The Tyler Factor
by Lumendea
Summary: Sequel to Time and the Trickster. Rose Tyler dares to think that maybe she's got her life under control. After all her mum knows about aliens now and her relationship with the Doctor is no longer a secret from her friends, but she's wrong. Now everything that makes her who she is hangs in the balance. Thirteen adventures and fifth in the Guardians of the Universe.
1. Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Chance Encount

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter One: Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Chance Encounter

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Welcome to the fifth story in the Guardians of the Universe series. I strongly urge you to go and read the pervious stories if you haven't already otherwise you will be lost very quickly. To all returning readers, thank you for all the fantastic support you've given to the series thus far and I hope you enjoy this latest season. This is an original episode to start off the new season!

Rose Marion Tyler was twenty years old and in her third year of university at Cambridge where she was working on a concurrent physics and computer science degrees. It was a warm sunny day in late September with just a few wisps of clouds overhead. She was sitting alone at a small table on the patio in front of the most popular coffee shop near the main campus. The tall roof lines of the old gothic buildings could be seen over nearby trees and would have created a peaceful scene if not for the hustle and bustle she was the midst of. All around her, students who were just returning to school or newly arrived first years were moving about and talking on the patio of the coffee shop. In the corner of her eye, Rose noticed a young woman she'd had several computer science classes with and waved to her as Anna headed inside.

Reaching up to her ear, Rose checked that the translator she'd been given by the Imperial Princess of Dumino years ago was still in place. The mass of voices around her seemed too loud for it all be in English, but her translator was still in place. Rose glanced around and debated heading back to her apartment or finding a quieter place to read the well-worn copy of Siddhartha that she'd pulled off the shelf this morning.

Classes would be starting in two days so she didn't have much more time to just relax, but Rose wasn't sure if there was any place in Cambridge that would be calm and quiet during the back to school rush. Yesterday her new neighbor, a fresh doctoral candidate in the biology department has spilled something that definitely didn't smell right. It was one of the reasons she was spending the day outside despite the noise. Internally shrugging, Rose lowered her eyes back to her book and did her best to ignore the people moving around her, taking a sip of her drink.

"This place is beyond crazy," a cheerful voice said in front of her. "Maybe it would have been best to look at Cambridge in a couple of weeks."

Rose glanced up from her book, wondering if the person was talking to her. A tall young woman with long cooper red hair, freckles, green eyes and a bright smile slipped into the seat across from her. The young woman was dressed for the warm weather in a short denim skirt, a blue top with a floral design and a thin scarf wrapped around her neck. A silver bracelet with an odd collection of small charms and stones jangled on her wrist. Rose didn't recognize her, but the young woman started glancing around.

"I hope Rory can find me in this crowd," she muttered in a warm Scottish accent before looking back at Rose with a widening grin. "You weren't kidding about how pretty the campus was here, the gothic architecture is wonderful. Not as good as it was back then, but it really holds up. But I'm just not sure that it's a good fit for me. Maybe the Doctor is right and I should just look at Edinburg, it would be really nice to go back to Scotland for a few years, but I'm not sure that would work for Rory." The woman shook her head and rested her hand on the palm of her hand, giving Rose a lazy smile. "So what brings you here? Are you checking on up me? If you are I promise that I've been keeping my passport close and fifty pounds in my boot."

Blinking at the young woman, Rose became aware that her mouth was hanging open a bit in shock. She stared at the young woman, trying to understand what was going on. Blinking, Rose wasn't surprised when the girl was still there, but was having trouble believing what she was saying so casually. The young woman looked a bit younger than her, barely old enough to be a student at the school. And she had mentioned the Doctor.

"Rose?" the young woman called to her, frowning slightly. "Are you alright?"

Rose nearly laughed as it finally clicked in her mind what was going on. A laugh escaped her as she closed her book and set it down on the table.

"I'm afraid that you have me at a disadvantage," Rose said carefully, glancing around for anyone who might have been listening. "I'm certain that we have never met, in my time line at least," Rose added in a softer voice.

The red haired young woman's eyes widened with a hint of panic. "You don't know me yet. Of course you don't, you're too young! But maybe this was supposed to happen…. You've mentioned things like that happening before." Rose stared at the young woman as she took in a deep breath and forced herself to calm down. "My name is Amelia Pond, most people call me Amy, but you've always called me Amelia or Mia. You're going to meet me in the future." Amelia or Mia gave Rose a soft smile. "So thanks in advance for that."

"I was born in 1989," Amelia informed Rose with a small smile. "This is my home time. I'm actually taking a gap year before starting university." Amelia gestured towards the towering buildings of the Cambridge campus. "I'm checking out some school campuses, your suggestion actually."

"Wow, you're only three years younger than I am," Rose said thoughtfully.

"That's my fault," Amelia said in a rush. "You've mentioned to me before that you're from this time period so I should have remembered that you'd have a young self-walking around."

Rose watched the young woman burry a hand in her long red hair, twirling the strands around her fingers and lean her face against her other hand. She seemed more embarrassed than actually worried about their out of synch meeting which allowed Rose to take a deep breath and calm down. After all, she met the Doctor and Jack out of order all the time.

"So gap year?" Rose asked to make conversation since Amelia didn't seem in a hurry to leave. "How is that so far?"

Amelia raised her head to look at her and Rose noticed that her green eyes were dancing with energy and excitement.

"It's great," Amelia told her. "I got great A Levels so you said I should take some time and explore Earth a bit. Said it was one thing that you wish you'd done."

"I suppose that's true," Rose remarked with a small nod. "I travel a lot, but mostly for…"

"Aliens," Amelia finished with a wide grin. "I know all about that."

"You do?" Rose asked, raising an eyebrow.

Amelia was grinning at Rose now and she nodded eagerly. "Bed time stories on the TARDIS since I was just a little girl."

"Wait so you've known me how long?" Rose questioned with a frown, leaning forward. She tried to hide the worry and unease that was rising in her. This encounter could either be a good thing or a very very bad paradox creating event.

"Since I was seven, April 1996," Amelia replied, tilting her head to give Rose a slightly triumphant look.

"And did… did you travel on the TARDIS?" Rose asked, feeling a touch of alarm at the idea of such a small child in the kind of danger she and the Doctor excelled at.

"Sort of," Amelia answered, shrugging. "You took me on trips every couple of weeks and I'd stay for a few days before you dropped me back at my aunt's right after we left. She never even noticed that I was gone." Amelia's smile softened as she looked at Rose. "So like I said, thanks for that. You and the Doctor pretty much raised me."

Before Rose had time to fully process Amelia's declaration, a tall young man with a roman nose, light brown hair and green eyes came walking up to them, holding a to go cup of coffee in each hand. His eyes moved over to Rose and he smiled at her before setting one of the coffee cups in front of Amelia.

"Rose," he greeted happily. "I didn't know you were here, I would have got you something too."

Unsure of what to say, Rose lifted her own coffee to show it to him and took a sip while Amelia jumped up and kissed the young man on the cheek.

"Rose this is my boyfriend Rory Williams," Amelia informed her. "He's planning on studying medicine, I'll have my own doctor in a few years. He travels with us sometimes too."

"Wait," Rory said, glancing between Amelia and Rose. "Amy what's going on here? Rose knows me."

"Not yet I don't," Rose informed him, shrugging and leaning back in her chair to study him. He looked like an average bloke, but Amelia had slipped her arm through his and was smiling at him like he was the most wonderful man on the planet. It made Rose oddly happy.

"Oh," Rory replied slowly, his mouth forming an o and he looked at Amelia with a hint of alarm. "Should you really be talking to her?"

"I'm wondering that myself," Rose told him with a nod.

"I'm sure it's fine," Amelia said with a laugh. "Now she know who I am and knows to take me on trips as a little girl despite the Doctor's original misgivings about it and she knows that you and I end up together. Need I remind you who pushed me to give you a chance as boyfriend material rather than keeping you as just a friend? This meeting is probably just maintaining the timelines of our future." Amelia grinned at her boyfriend, eyes twinkling. "Big ball of wibbely-wobbly timey-wimey stuff remember."

Rory's shoulders relaxed and Rose blinked at the sudden rush of information that she'd just gotten.

"I suppose so," Rory said slowly. "But we should still be careful, Amy."

"Agreed," Rose told him with a nod as she glanced around. She was suddenly very aware of how crowded the patio was and the people who could be listening in on them. "Come on," Rose ordered as she stood up and slipped her book into her shoulder bag. Picking up her coffee, she pushed her chair in and began to navigate her way out of the seating area. A quick glance over her shoulder assured her that Amelia and Rory were following her.

It didn't take long for Rose to find a new empty spot under a tree on the campus lawn to talk. Amelia nearly skipped over to join her while Rory followed at a slower pace that betrayed his worry over the situation. Rose took a moment to study hem both further. Amelia walked gracefully and deliberately, hinting at either a history of dance or martial arts. Rose guessed it was probably the latter, she had a hard enough time envisioning a child traveling in the TARDIS, but if it did happen she was sure that she would make sure the child knew how to defend themselves. Amelia was clearly confident, Rose didn't know if it was due to her very attractive looks or her experiences, but it didn't seem superficial like most teenagers.

Rory on the other hand was less confident, but there was determination in the way he held himself. Rose noted that even when there was distance between him and Amelia, he kept an eye on his girlfriend. The offhand remark Amelia had made about encouraging them to date echoed in Rose's mind and she filed it away. Clearly despite being so young, they both knew about aliens so clearly her future self saw or would see something in Rory that would make her comfortable bringing him into the messy details of her life. That or he stumbled into it and was too stubborn to leave like Rani or Clyde.

"Alright," Amelia said, rolling the word thickly and showing off her accent. "Private conversation now."

"So did I ever indicate that we'd met before?" Rose asked looking at Amelia in curiosity.

"Nope," Amelia answered, popping her p in a way very similar to how the Tenth Doctor did. "Afraid not."

"Fine," Rose replied with a thoughtful nod. "Can you think of anything else that I need to know?"

"Other than that I travel with you an adult not really," Amelia told her, tilting her head and smiling. "I can't believe I thought you were your older self. I mean I know you don't really age, but-"

"Amy!" Rory scolded sharply, looking at Rose in alarm.

"Yeah," Rose said slowly with a look towards Rory. "I've met myself in the future and I don't seem to age much."

"Your accent is different though," Amelia observed with a tilt of her head, causing some of her long hair to spill over her shoulder. "Wonder why the change."

Rose barely contained a sigh at Amelia's remark, she'd noticed the accent thing too on her encounters with her future, but knew better than to ask.

"Amy," Rory chided, "Please be careful about what you say." His eyes darted towards Rose with a hint of worry.

"Rory calm down," Amelia replied, wrapping her arm around his and giving her boyfriend a sweet smile. "Like I said this must be a temporal circle. You remember-"

"I remember," Rory said quickly cutting her off. "Just-"

The hairs on Rose's arm suddenly began to stand on end and the air around her felt thicker. Rory fell silent and glanced around, tightening his grip on Amy. Rose sucked in a quick breath as she scanned the area, looking for anything out of place. Then suddenly a field of bright blue energy surrounded her and the world around her went fuzzy before vanishing all together.

Everything came back into focus a moment later and Rose barely stayed on her feet as a wave of dizziness hit her. Blinking and giving her head a quick shake, Rose looked around and noted that she was in a small white bay with curving walls and a flickering platform beneath her feet. She sucked in a deep breath, noticing a change in the air that seemed familiar, but she couldn't place.

"Head rush," Amelia's voice said suddenly behind her causing Rose to spin around.

Rory was supporting Amelia, rapidly blinking his eyes and looking around with confusion and worry written on his face. The expression was gone in a moment as he swallowed and looked over at her. Nodding to him, Rose turned to survey the room; there was a large arched opening in front of them. She glanced back at the others, only to find them waiting for her. With another nod Rose stepped through the doorway and into a slightly larger domed room with pale green walls. On one side was a series of transparent pads with tall humanoid forms inside.

"What a minute," Rose gasped as she stepped closer to the pod. A laugh escaped her as she studied the thin forms made out of a shining white metal. Their joints and connecting sections were made of a dark blue material. At the moment the eyes were dark and they were unmoving.

"I've seen these before," Rose announced with a growing smile. "If these are here then I bet we're on an Otharan ship.

"Indeed Rose Tyler," a deep and smooth voice said from the other side of the room.

Turning Rose grinned as a figure shorter than her strode towards them. He had blue skin accented with lines of white skin that accentuated the muscles and bone structure of his hairless head and neck. The aliens ears were similar to a dog's and a small rounded nose with three folds of tightly wrinkled skin near his eyes. The very human mouth was smiling at Rose.

"Councilor Markin," Rose greeted with a widening smile. "It's great to see you again."

"It is pleasant to see you as well Rose Tyler," Markin agreed, coming to a stop a few feet in front of her before his eyes moved to Amelia and Rory. "Oh dear, we were trying to simply transmat you up to the ship. We locked onto the Artron energy in your system."

"That's our fault, we've got the same energy traces as Rose, but it's fine," Amelia said quickly, "We're friends and we know about aliens. It's no problem."

"I see," Markin intoned calmly, nodding to Amelia and Rory before turning his attention back to Rose. "Rose Tyler, I have come to ask for your help."


	2. Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Departure

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Two: Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Departure

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Thank you everyone for the brilliant reviews of the first chapter. Over thirty reviews and 70 favorites just for the first chapter. Of course bringing in Amy and Rory has everyone asking about Clara. She will appear as a companion in the next season through timey-wimeyness.

"Rose Tyler, I have come to ask for your help."

Blinking in surprise at the statement, Rose couldn't stop the smile that took over her face. This was certainly different, being asked for help in advance of a crash, an invasion or something ugly happening. Behind her Amelia chuckled and a small snort escaped Rory. Rose resisted the urge to turn and look at them and instead nodded to Markin.

"What do you need Markin?" she asked, doing her best to sound professional. "Is something wrong on Earth?"

"No, nothing like that," Markin assured her quickly with a nod. "In fact it has nothing to do with your planet." He turned his eyes back to Amelia and Rory. "I can of course send your friends back to Earth."

"We're staying with Rose," Amelia said in a loud and clear voice, her Scottish accent ringing in the room with determination.

"Very well," Markin replied with a nod. "Then please follow me, this is no place to formerly have company."

The alien Chancellor turned and headed for the doorway on the far side of the room. They stepped into a long corridor with curved blue tinted walls with passages running off in either direction. Doors were visible at the end of each corridor, but Markin led them forward. Other Orthans were moving around them in different color and styles of uniforms and most stopped to study them for a moment before giving them deep nods and moving on. Markin led them to the end of the corridor were it widened into a round room without any doors.

Glancing down, Rose noticed that the floor was different than in the corridor. It had small smooth lines just visible beneath a nearly transparent surface and small lights were flashing.

"Level two," Markin commanded calmly once Rory and Amelia joined them in the room. "Please stay calm," he added to them just before the floor began to move.

They lifted up slowly and Rose quickly looked up only to see a barrier of energy vanish just above them. There was one further up and that vanished as they approached it, but then the next energy barrier above them did not. The floor stopped moving and they were standing in front of a short corridor that lead to a large domed room.

"This way please," Markin said, gesturing forward and smiling slightly before he led the way.

"Nice lift," Amelia commented, winking at Rose as she moved past her and into the corridor.

Shaking her head, Rose glanced up at the energy barrier, wondering briefly what its properties were before she stepped off the platform and followed Markin.

The domed room was large and the ways were a much darker shade of blue. One large window looked out into space and lucky for them, they were facing Earth. Rose smiled at the sight of her planet filling up the screen, soft white clouds cutting across the blue of the oceans and he green of the continents.

"I never get tired of that view," Amelia whispered beside her.

"Neither do I," Rose whispered back, finally tearing her gaze away from the brilliant view to take in the rest of the room.

There was a long oval table made of the same or at least very similar looking metal to the robots with small chairs all around it. Markin calmly seated himself at the head of the table and gestured for them to join him. Amelia moved the fastest, gliding straight to the table and sitting down on the far side with a big smile. Rory glanced over at Rose and raised his eyebrows while sighing softly before moving over to join his girlfriend. Looking back at Markin, Rose walked over and seated herself next to him, torn between nervous excitement and amusement.

"What is this about Markin?" Rose questioned, trying to sound professional.

The Councilor reached to the side and tapped a small button, so low that Rose didn't even notice it built into the table until he pressed it. The metal of the table shimmered for a moment before a large hologram appeared in front of Rose, the floating form of a green and blue planet not too much unlike her own. Two moons orbited the planet smoothly and Rory reach out only to have one of them pass through his hand. He chuckled softly, but Amelia smacked him on the arm and nodded towards Markin.

"This is the planet Etheia, home of the sentient species the Etheians. Until recently there has been a no interference protection order on the planet upheld by us as they are in a neutral territory near our boundaries. We've had very little to do with them over the years, just some checks now and then to track their status. It is rare that a planet moves beyond level five without space travel but it has happened before."

"Did they?" Rose asked, glancing back at the image of the planet.

"No, no," Markin quickly said with a shake of his head. "In fact they recently managed extra stellar space travel, but I'm afraid that their first encounter did not go well." Markin paused before slowly adding, "In fact it was a disaster. There ship had tools for drilling into asteroids in the outer space of their star system, but when a trader ship came too close the captain paniced and turned the laser drill on the ship. All hands were lost."

"How terrible," Amelia gasped, frowning deeply. "Surely an apology-"

"Etheia is not a united planet," Markin informed them seriously. "This incident has caused massive panic on their world. The ship was actually owned by a private company who did offer an apology when Etheia was contacted about the incident, but I'm afraid that the people have not reacted well to knowledge of aliens."

"So why do you need Rose?" Rory asked. "Sounds like everyone should just give them some space."

"Indeed, they have a long way to go, but the ship they attacked was from the Durmino Empire. There were over sixty citizens aboard so there are calls for war in the Durmino captiol. The Emperor has sent the Princess to form a treaty in order to satisfy the honor of his people while avoiding invading Etheia."

"They wouldn't stand a chance," Rose muttered, thinking of the monstrous Durmnio fleet and the militant like attitude that had still followed the species even after a peace treaty. She wasn't an expert, but a few years was a pretty short time to expect everyone to have embraced peace. "So Princess Alenica will be at the negotiations?"

"She will be. Upon discussion with her we realized that we both knew you and felt that you might be able to serve as something of a translator."

"Something of a translator?" Rose repeated with confusion.

"You come from a planet with very limited space faring abilities and have experience with both my people and the Durmino Empire. We need someone neutral who knows enough about the galaxy to be informed, but also someone familiar with more…" Markin hesitated, but added, "Primitive mindsets."

Raising her eyebrow, Rose enjoyed watching Markin squirm for a moment before smiling and nodding in agreement. She wasn't after all under any delusions about the current state of affairs on her planet. After all she worked for a nearly secret organization in order to help with alien threats and after the Big Ben incident people had been quick to dismiss everything as a hoax.

"How long are you expecting this to take?" Rose asked carefully, mindful of school. "Because while I'm willing to help get things started I won't be able to stay more than a few days."

"I am optimistic that this will be sorted quickly. The Etheians want technology, but are afraid of it being used for war. I believe that quarantining the star system to ensure than advanced technology does no benefit any of the states on their planet will be determined as the safest option." Markin held up his hand when Rose started to speak and added. "And of course I will see you back to Earth when you need to return."

"Okay," Rose agreed with a nod. "That will do. I should probably get a few things." 

"We will provide anything you require," Markin promised her quickly. "I'm afraid that transmatting you again back to Earth and then back to the ship would draw… unwanted attention from certain parties on your planet."

Rose didn't need him to say anything further and nodded her agreement. Markin was tensed up with an angry expression on his face. He pressed another button on the table and a voice answered, "Yes Councilor?" 

"Our guests have agreed to help us, you may depart when ready. Please inform Rethilan Prime that we will require two additional accommodations and that dietary arrangement for two more humans are requested."

When the call ended and Markin took his finger off the button, Rory nodded to him and said, "Thank you."

"We'll help Rose in any way we can," Amelia added gaining a curious expression from Markin who looked over at Rose.

"They're friends, they'll be fine." Rose promised glancing over at them before adding seriously. "I take responsibility for them."

"As you wish," Markin agreed with a deep nod and Amelia beamed at her, looking incredibly happy at her statement.

Markin pressed another button on the table and Rose heard a small chime just before a door slid open on the far side of the room. Another Orthan walked into the room, his white marking much whiter and brighter than the more faded ones of Markin and dressed in an almost sky blue robe. The Orthan walked quickly to the table and bowed to Markin before turning his attention to them. Rose couldn't help, but smile when the alien gave her a small bow before nodding to Amelia and Rory.

"This is Rethin," Markin introduced. "He will be seeing to your needs."

"It is my pleasure," Rethin told them, his thin lips forming a smile. "Sir I just received a message from the helm. They wish to know if you or your guests care to observe our departure."

When Markin looked over at her, Rose grinned and nodded, climbing to her feet. "That sounds very nice," she said looking at Rethin. "I've been on spaceships before, but never properly seen them in flight."

"Most of the ship is built to hide the effects of movement," Markin explained as he also stood and gestured from them to follow. "But on the bridge, the viewing screens show the view outside perfectly and allow a better sense of movement."

"Hope I don't get sick," Rory whispered to Amelia behind them as they headed for the doorway Rethin had entered by.

Rose walked alongside Markin as they headed through another rather bare corridor, but more Orthans were walking about than before. Doorways were open to other rooms and Rose leaned so she could peek into them as they walked.

"I'll be sure to give you a full tour when we return you to Earth," Markin promised. "But I fear that we are already running late for the start of the treaty negotiations."

"You didn't come to get Rose early?" Rory asked in a mildly suspicious voice.

"Politics were the delaying factor as usual," Marking replied with a soft chuckle. "Rose Tyler's name came up almost by accident. We did consider other negotiators even the professionals employed by the Shadow Proclamation and both our government, but the conclusion was the same for all of them. The Etherias would potentially feel threatened by too many highly advanced off worlders who lacked a perspective as to their situation."

"Since they aren't an united planet, who are they sending?" Rose asked as they passed through another doorway. "Since there isn't a ruler or a single representative body?"

"There are three representatives coming, one from each of the most powerful superpowers. One is from a democracy similar to your own, one is a religious state that is somewhat in turmoil now due to the revelation of alien life and the third is a rather strict monarchy."

"Oh," Rose muttered, "Great, sounds like a great mix to have all together."

"Should be fun," Amelia added from behind her.

Rose was about to ask more questions, but they suddenly came to a large door that opened with a hiss revealing the bridge of the ship. It was circular with a domed ceiling, gleaming white with bursts of color from control stations and lights. A raised walkway led from the doorway to the center of the room past numerous aliens all sitting at compact work stations. An Orthan dressed in a white robe with insignias on his upper arms turned to look at them.

"Welcome," he greeted as he started to move towards them. "We are ready for departure." Markin looked up at Rose once more and she nodded, barely containing a smile. "Please take a seat," the Orthan added, gesturing to their right.

Rose turned to see a series of small white chairs fixed into the wall of the bridge. Rory gave them a doubtful look, but Amelia strode over and sat down. The chair adjusted to her, reminding Rose a bit of feather down or microbeads except much firmed. Amelia laughed and gestured from them to join her. Rose sat down quickly while Rory eased himself a bit more gently into place. The chairs widened to fit their larger forms. Sitting down next to her, Markin smiled and nodded to the officer once again. A moment later white metal unfolded from the chair down Rose's shoulders and up her sides, meeting in the middle of her chest to form an x shape. She turned quickly to see the same restraints spreading over Amelia, Rory and Markin.

"Merely a precaution," Markin assured them. "All the crew use them when the ship first begins to move. The initial speed jump can be very abrupt."

"What kind of system do you use?" Amelia asked. "Constant speed or variation?"

"Variation," Markin replied looking rather pleased at the question. "We jump to a high speed and then slow down gradually as we approach our destination."

Rose was about to ask something, but a sudden series of three chimes filled the air and echoed around the bridge and she assumed the ship. The few standing Orthans quickly moved to seats and she noticed the restraints come out to secure them. The commanding office sat down himself and waited as his own restraints settled into place.

"Depart for Rethilan Prime, now."

The bridge seemed to stop for a split second, the air thick and the world almost hazy to Rose's eyes. With effort she blinked her eyes, clearing them just in time to see the stars suddenly begin to stretch out on the view screens like a visual effect out of Star Wars. Next to her Amelia laughed, the noise sounding far away and distant. Around her she heard more sluggish noises, but then everything suddenly snapped back into place.

"That is a wild experience," Amelia announced next to her.

Rose sucked in a deep breath. "Yes it is," Rose agreed looking over at the beaming teenager before looking back to the view screens.

Stars were still rushing past, the effect was less clear now. It was a blur of colors and light blending together in a strange visual mixture.

"We're going the speed of light," Rose observed with a soft gasp.

"Indeed," Markin chuckled next to her, "The transition to light speed is always a bit uncomfortable the first time and can be physically jarring. Hence the restraints," he explained just as the restraints suddenly opened and were pulled back into the chair. "It is safe to get up now and walk around. The ship's position and speed are now being adjusted for by the space we are traveling in."

"Right," Rose whispered as she stood up and gazed at the view screens. "The very fabric of space and time bends around an object traveling the speed of light due to the great distances of space being covered." Rose shook her head and giggled softly. "Einstein was good at math."

"And you just lost me," Rory observed as he stood up. "I've never been much for physics."

Rose look over at Amelia who smiled and shrugged. "You lectured, I absorbed some of it. Honestly I was also better at xenobiology. I loved learning about alien plants and animals when I was a little kid. I even had a pet crystalline life form for a bit." She sighed and looked sad for a moment. "Shimmer was so pretty, but really short lifespan."

Nodding slowly, Rose was sure her eyes were open wide and she turned her attention back to Markin.

"How long until we reach… Rethilan Prime?"

"Two hours," Markin announced before gesturing back to the doorway. "If you'll come with me Rose, I'll go over the treaty outlines that have been prepared. We have seven main items that need to be addressed."

"You already have parts of the treaty drafted?" Rose repeated as Markin led her off the bridge. "Are we talking general points that you're confident on?"

"We fully expect the Etherias to be happy to have their star system clear of off worlders and accept temporary restrictions on how far out they go in exchange for remaining under the protection of the Orthans."

"Then maybe this will go easy and smoothly," Rose offered with a smile even as she internally flinched and shuddered. Knowing her life, she really doubted that the treaty process would go smoothly and judging from the look on Markin's face, he shared her concerns.


	3. Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Delegations

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Three: Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Delegations

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Thanks for all the lovely feedback and support. To those who saw the wrong chapter I'm so sorry about that, it was uploaded and ready to go, but the wrong document got clicked instead. Thanks to everyone who alerted me to this. This episode is going to be six chapters long due to the slower build up, I blame the Ponds for demanding so much screen time. I'm posting early because I'll be traveling and working this weekend and wanted to be sure you got your update.

When the ship arrived, Rose had only a moment to look at the planet out the viewscreen before Markin began sheparding her, Amelia and Rory towards the transmat system. Watching Rory and Amelia walk ahead of her, Rose had to admit that they were both taking this in stride as Rory asked Rethin questions about the political system of the Orthans and their medical technology. Amelia was smiling proudly at him, hinting to Rose that she'd probably introduced her boyfriend to her alien lifestyle not too long ago. Just long enough that he'd adjusted and was taking advantage of the situation to ask smart questions, but not so long that it had become an easy thing. It was tempting to ask them about it, but a little warning about timelines and knowing her own future at the back of her mind kept Rose silence.

Maybe it was her nerves or that she knew it was coming, but the transmat was a lot rougher this time. She swayed on her feet and had to blink several times to get the world back into focus. They were standing on a transmat platform in a large room. A set of controls were set up a few feet away so that a pair of Orthans controlling the platform could see them. Another group of Orthans were standing in the corner, but came forward as soon as Markin stepped off the platform.

"This is Rose Tyler," Markin announced, gesturing to Rose who stepped forward. She was at a loss of just how to act, but settled on straightening her posture, smiling and nodding to them. "And here companions Amelia and Rory." The use of the word companion almost made Rose burst out laughing, but she held it in. Markin turned back to her and said, "I must go and see to the arrival of the Etheians and ensure that the Dormino delegation is settled. Rethin will see you to your rooms and answer any final questions you may have."

"How soon will the talks begin?" Rose asked before he moved too far away.

"As soon as the Etheians are ready," Markin informed her. "Now that everyone is here we could begin at any moment."

"So Princess Alenica is here?" Rose asked eagerly, showing more excitement than she meant to.

"Indeed," Rethin informed her smoothly. "I will alert Her Imperial Highness that you have arrived, I am sure that she would like the opportunity to speak with you." Rethin gave Rose a small smile. "In the limited conversations I have been present for, Her Imperial Highness speaks highly of you."

Rose couldn't help but feel pleased as the statement and nodded to Rethin, rubbing her gold bracelet as she began to follow the Orthan from the transmat room.

The complex on Rethilan Prime was relatively small Rose realized as Rethin guided them further into the center of the complex. Apparently each species, minus humans, had a small wing for their diplomats and staff. The Orthans and Durmino Empire each had their own transmat with a third transmat serving the Etheians. Joining the three wings together were three large rooms, one for group discussions, one for eating and the third serving as a relaxing room. Rose expected that the Orthans and Durmino Empire would use the rooms the most, she had a hard time envisioning the Etheians being comfortable around the aliens or each other for that matter under the circumstances.

"You chambers have been prepared over here," Rethin announced as they passed the relaxation room. "This is neutral ground so to speak, two Orlian observers from the Shadow Proclamation are also present, but they have no part in the talks."

Rethin pressed a button at the side of a closed doorway and the door slid open with a soft hum. He gestured them inside, glancing over towards a pair of tall, red eyed aliens with pale skin and white hair who were watching the trio of humans with mild interest. Rose looked over and nodded to the pair, amusing them to be the Orlian observes. They nodded in return and Rose stepped inside.

It was small white room with walls that curved gently and become the sealing without any sharp corners. A window on the far side looked out over a red landscape dotted with dark purple plants and a violet sky. Amelia walked past Rose and sat down on the long blue sofa that stretched over half of the room. Panels were placed around the walls, some giving off light and others covered with buttons and small screens. A table and three blue chairs that matched the sofa were placed off the right. For her position Rose could see into a pair of bedrooms opposite of each other.

"I am afraid that we were not completely prepared for there to be three of you," Rethin apologized. "I can arrange-"

"It's fine," Rory told him, leaning to look into one of the bedrooms. "We can share without any trouble."

Rethin blinked at Rory and then looked over at Rose with a curious expression. Chuckling, Rose pointed over to Amelia and then to Rory. Their guide nodded in understanding.

"Very well," Rethin replied with a nod. "Clothing will be provided for you within the hour. If you require anything, please simply pressed this button." Rethin informed them as he pointed to a green button on a nearby panel. "I will return shortly with clothing, your identity pins and communication devices. I must ask that you do not leave this room until I return. Moving about the complex without a designated guide or your indent bars could result in trouble."

"Understood," Rose promised, "We'll stay here."

There was a chime at the door which caught everyone's attention. Rethin made a show of reaching over and pressing the blue button near the doorway. Rose heard the soft hum again as the door opened. A tall humanoid figure with fine features and pale skin that had a bluish gleam to it stood in the doorway. Wide and deep blue eyes looked past Rethin and fixed on Rose. Dark blue thin lips curved into a smile. Deer like ears rotated towards Rose as she gasped softly in recognition. The figure's black hair was piled up on its head in elegant braids holding a jeweled circlet in place.

Rethin bowed and stepped out of the doorway allowing Princess Alenica into the room. Grinning, Rose stepped forward and debated bowing or curtseying to the Princess. They'd parted on good terms, but it was clear that the Princess was much older and judging from her presence at the negotiations wielding more authority. Princess Alenica solved Rose's dilemma when she swept into a graceful curtsy, her gown floating around her.

"My Lady Star Knight," Alenica greeted formerly. "It is a pleasure and an honor."

Encouraged by the welcome, Rose bowed to Alenica and replied, "It is a pleasure to see you once again Your Highness."

Alenica stood up and grinned at Rose, her dark blue eyes bright with excitement. She turned and gestured to her two attendants. Both women curtsied once again before turning and leaving the room. Rethin looked over at Rose who nodded to him before he too left the room.

"Rose, it is wonderful to have you here," Alenica told her. "I hope that we did not inconvenience you. I simply couldn't think of anyone else who I trusted to deal with this situation fairly." Alenica shifted a bit nervously. "And the Orthan Council had only good things to say about you. Father expressed disappointment that he could not attend the conference and meet you."

"Its fine Alenica," Rose assured her, smiling as she caught a glimpse of the young princess she'd met years ago. "Not being able to grab some clothes was a bit hard, but I'm sure it will be fine."

Alenica visible relaxed, her ears straightening up once again and her smile returning. She glanced around the room with a doubtful look until she caught sight of Amelia and Rory.

"Oh dear," she sighed. "I hope that I have no disturbed you."

"Of course not," Rose told her. "Amelia, Rory this is Princess Alenica, the Imperial Princess to the Durmino Empire and heir of the Emperor." Rose paused and nearly laughed, she actually had no idea what the name of Alenica's father was."

Princess Alenica considered Amelia with a curious expression and started to reach towards her before pulling her hand back.

"What?" Amelia asked a little rudely and Rose nearly laughed knowing from whom she'd picked that up from.

"Forgive me," Alenica said gently. "I thought I saw one of our translators behind your ear…"

Rose leaned to the side and could just see the bottom of a Durmino translator behind Amelia's ear. From her angel slightly behind them she also caught sight of one behind Rory's ear.

"Uh yeah," Rory answered nervously. "We got from…"

"UNIT," Rose explained quickly with a smile to Alenica. "They've been replicating the one you gifted to them."

A smile lit up Alenica's face and she reached towards Rose who allowed the Durmino Princess to turn her face.

"Is that the one that I gave you?" Alenica asked.

"It is," Rose told her, nodding as Alenica released her face. "It's been upgraded… by another alien ally of mine."

Amelia chuckled softly, but Rory kept a straight face as Alenica nodded at the statement.

"I see," Alenica replied softly. "I should properly introduce myself. I am Princess Alenica of the Durmino Empire, it means light of the future."

"I am Amelia Pond," Amelia said warmly, giving a small curtsey to Alenica. "My name means industrious."

"Hello," Rory greeted with a slightly awkward bow. "I am Rory Williams, it means…"

Alenica chuckled and smiled warmly at Rory. "My apologies, Rose did tell me years ago that the meaning of names did not carry as much significance in your culture as it does mine."

Rose caught sight of Amelia doing something with her mobile phone just before a laugh escaped her drawing everyone's attention.

"Well Rory according to Google your name means Red King," Amelia informed him, putting her arm through his with a smile. "A good Scottish name."

"Funny given you're the Scot," Rory pointed out returning the smile.

"So you are friends of Rose from Earth," Alenica asked glancing over at Rose. "How long has you know each other."

Rory gaped at her, lost for an answer, but Amelia just smiled charmingly and answered, "I have known Rose since I was just a little girl. She's been a great inspiration to me ever since."

It was the right thing to say, Alenica beamed at them both. She opened her mouth to say something, but a chime at the door made them all turn. Rose quickly walked over and pressed the blue button causing the door to open. Rethin swept inside pulling a small cart with three large boxes on it behind him.

"Forgive the intrusion," Rethin said with a small bow. "Here are your effects for the conference."

"I will leave you to ready yourselves," Alenica announced, turning to smile at Rose. "It is a joy to see you once more my friend." Alenica leaned forward and kissed Rose's cheek gently. "Let us hope that this conference is smooth and the negotiations a benefit to the galaxy."

"Here here," Rory agreed in a low voice.

Alenica swept out of the room and just before the door closed, Rose saw her attendants join her in the hallway.

"Now then," Rethin said, calling their attention back to him. "Inside you will find clothing that is similar to your earth garments, but in neutral colors so as not to offend. They have been sized for you."

"How did you get our sizes?" Rory asked, sounding alarmed.

Rethin seemed confused by the question, but answered, "We transmated you, sensors chart the form of the being during transmat. It is a simple matter to ascertain clothing sizing." He reached into one of the boxes and pulled out a small dark blue pin and held it up. "This is a security pin, sensors in doorways will detect them and allow you through, if you do not have the correct pin then an alarm will sound. Be sure to wear them whenever you leave these quarters. Lastly," he held up a small device that resembled a phone. "These communicators link to the complex's system so that you can contact anyone. Other communication devices do not work on the planet so if you need to contact someone off world please inform a member of staff. They can send a message by relaying it through one of the ships in orbit."

Rose and Amelia shared a smile, both fingering their superphones in their pockets.

"I will leave you to dress. I expect that the conference will begin very shortly."

…

Rose tried not to tug at the high white and gold collar that rose up from her white button up tunic. She had to admit that the outfit looked great, a long formal almost military looking white coat that hung almost to her knees over a golden undershirt with white slacks. They'd even produced white boots for her to wear. Given the golden roses embroidered along the cuffs of the coat, Rose had a strong feeling that Alenica's influence had extended to her clothing. Raising her hand, Rose checked her hair which she'd put in a simple long braid down her back. Now she was wondering if leaving it down would have helped her cope with the unfamiliar feeling of the collar.

"Wow," Amelia said as she stepped out of the side room that she and Rory had claimed. "You look fantastic!"

Rose turned to look at Amelia, expecting to see her in something similar to what she was wearing, but she wasn't. Instead Amelia was in a long earthy green skirt with elegant designs on the bottom hem with a long tunic like white shirt edged with lace. A shimmering woven green scarf around her neck completed the look that did seem very Earth like, but much more refined.

"I'm not sure about this shade of green," Amelia admitted, but she spun around causing the skirt to swirl around her. "But it goes with my boots," Amelia remarked showing Rose the plain black boots that she was indeed still wearing.

"Where's Rory?" Rose asked, looking beyond Amelia.

"Oh come on!" Amelia called, "You look good and we'll be late."

There was a huff, but a moment later Rory joined them. His jeans had been replaced with dark slacks and tall boots with strange fastenings on the front. He wore a dark brown jacket which sort of resembled leather over a green shirt that matched Amelia's skirt.

"You almost look like a military officer," Rory commented as he glanced at Rose's clothing.

"I think Alenica is showing me off as the only Star Knight," Rose replied with a shrug.

There was a chime from the door and Rose took a few steps closer to the doorway and pressed the button to open it. Rethin stood in the doorway, now dressed in a slightly more elegant outfit of a darker shade of blue with several metal pins decorating the shoulders. He nodded in approval as he looked at each them.

"Excellent," he said smiling softly. "Most excellent if you will please follow me."

Amelia and Rory joined Rose by the doorway. Rose's legs suddenly felt weak as she tried to move to follow Rethin. She suddenly felt like she was going to be sick. Then a hand slid into hers, it was soft and warm. Turning she found Amelia standing next to her and smiling gently.

"You'll be brilliant," Amelia whispered. "Your job is just to keep the peace and help calm things down. Markin will start the discussions and Alenica's government will be presenting their thoughts."

"So you're saying I'm just the babysitter," Rose whispered back as she finally got her feet to start moving and followed Rethin.

"A very clever babysitter," Amelia told her with a chuckle before letting down of her hand.

As they stepped into the main room, Rose had the almost overwhelming desire to grab Amelia's hand again. The round table looked like something out of the footage of the United Nations with small gaps to allow staff to move in and out. Name plates were set up in front of everyone's places alongside small viewing screens which were blank at the moment.

Rose nodded to Markin and Alenica who were already seated near each other along with another member of their species. Then she turned towards the Etheian side of the table to see the other side of the matter. She blinked in surprise, but managed to keep her expression neutral. A tall humanoid being that greatly resembled an Asian man of her own species nodded to her. The difference was that his torso was elongated with two sets of arms. One pair of arms was resting on the armrests of the seat while the other two were resting on the table.

"Ah we are all here now," Markin said as he stood gracefully. Rethin lead them to their seats, a set of three all on the far side of the table between the Durminos and Etheians and opposite the Otharans. Rose wondered if the humans and Otharans were serving as buffers between the two species that had nearly gone to war. "Let us begin."


	4. Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Explosive Talk

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Three: Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Explosive Talks

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Sorry you had to wait for this, things have not been going well. In fact I'm willing going back to being unemployed to leave a rather toxic work environment that has been sapping everything out of me. Hopefully things will improve soon and I'll be back to faster updates soon.

Rose had been under the assumption that diplomatic talks were mostly boring with diplomats waltzing around each other with words. She wasn't completely wrong in that, but it was anything but boring watching the three sides test each other. To be fair the Durminos and the Orthans knew each other and had no interest in testing one another, instead all their attention was focused on the Etheians who were forced to split their attention. Under the terms of the diplomatic conference the Orthans were mostly neutral, just seeking the best solution for a world that was outgrowing their protection, but the look that Gervin of Etheria was giving Markin made it clear that he didn't completely believe it.

A quick thought flittered through her mind, wondering how Earth would react in such a case. Her poor little level five planet had a constant alien presence, if not invaders or lost tourists then aliens actually living their lives on Earth. The Donovan twins were proof enough of that.

"You want to put us in a cage," a younger Durmino with short, what appeared to be gelled hair snapped at the Orthans. "We have a right to explore the galaxy."

"Then you must be prepared to accept the consequences of that exploration," Markin said sternly sounding a lot like an irritated parent. "The Durminos have held off any retaliation on the basis that you are a new comer and unaware of the greater scope of the universe. If you reject peace and certain rules now there is no promise that you will avoid war in the future."

The tallest of the Etheians, a general of some kind named Vardic was sitting calmly with two of arms resting on armrests and the other folded across his chest at he considered Markin. He said nothing, but nodded, one of his hands moving slightly under the table. Judging from how the younger one slumped back in his seat Rose guessed he'd been given some kind of signal.

"You fired on us," one of the Durmino's remarked, Rose thought his name was Adriyn. "You are a species still unable to form peace on your planet, how can you hope to navigate the complex politics of peoples who are not like you."

The youngest of the Etheians jumped up, raising two of his hands in fists and shaking them and the other two clutched the edge of the table.

"You are tyrants! You act as though you own the reaches of space!"

There was a sudden tangible tension in the air that made Rose tense and suck in a sharp breath. Despite a gesture from Vardic was ignored by the Etheian and Gervin stood up as well. In the corner of her eye, Rose saw Alencia raise her chin and brace herself for what was coming.

"Be careful," Alencia declared, looking at the two standing Etheians before her eyes settled on Vardic. "Remember to whom you speak, remember the unified power that we possess while you're world-"

"Hold on!" Rose called as she jumped to her feet, gesturing to the Etheian representatives and Princess Alenica. "Please let's take a moment. Everyone sit down!"

To her relief Princess Alenica nodded, falling silent and motioned for the other two Durmino representatives to sit back down. The Etheians blinked in surprise at the sudden calm on the far side of the table and one of them glanced over at Rose, the earlier doubtful expression replaced by one of curiosity. After a moment the three Etheians sat down.

"Thank you," Rose said nodding to both sides and looked across the table at Markin who was smiling slightly at her. "Now the Etheian question is valid and I will repeat it in perhaps a more civil manner. What will the treaty mean when the Etheians are ready to explore and trade beyond their solar system? Maybe they are not now, maybe there are issues on their planet that they need to address, but it won't be like that forever. How can they be certain that they are not locking their descendants into a limited region of space?"

The Etheians nodded, one of them banging on the table. Princess Alenica barely hid her distaste at the gesture, but nodded her understanding. Rose didn't dare sigh in relief, watching both ends of the table carefully, but catching a small smile on Markin's face. Slowly, Rose sat back down and felt Amelia reach over to touch her hand under the table. The tension in her shoulders eased slightly.

Princess Alenica opened to mouth to reply to the question and calm the waiting Etheians when suddenly there was a terrible crack and boom from the far side of the room. An explosion shook the building, a wave of pressure blasting through the room. With a terrible crunch, parts of the west wall crumbled inward, smashing against the backs of two of the delegates: Rethin and one of the Durmino Empire's representatives. Rose hit the ground with a thud, the air forced from her lungs with Amelia beside her and Rory over them both. Her brain tried to process what was happening, but the strange acidic smell in the air made it hard to think and the screams and voices all around them made it impossible to focus.

Then there was a strange moment of quiet as everything went still in the room. Slowly Rory moved off of them and stood up slowly. Pushing off the ground, Rose saw aides and medics rushing into the room. One of them moved over to them, holding out a small scanner which beeped slowly as it passed over Rose.

"Stay still," the Orthan ordered sternly, adjusting something on the scanner bar. There was a soft green glow and Rose's chest ached painfully for a moment. Then she exhaled and the muscles relaxed. "Done," the Orthan informed her before turning and repeating the process on Amelia and Rory. It took longer with Rory due to his position but after a few moments he informed them that they had no broken bones or internal injuries.

"I'd like one of those," Rory muttered as they climbed up to their feet. Rose noted that Amelia was gripping his hand tightly.

"Thanks," Rose told him with a nod, receiving one in return. She looked over towards the main point of the explosion and flinched. The medics were standing over two prone unmoving forms, one of the medics shook their head to Alenica and Markin.

"I suggest that we recess to our quarters," General Vardic announced, rising from the floor and pushing away a medic. "I trust that security will be investigating this."

"Indeed," Markin agreed, eyeing the uninjured Etheians carefully. Then he glanced at Rose and eyed the gaping hole in the wall. Rose nodded her understanding.

Rory moved towards the medics, kneeling down by one of the injured Orthans without a second thought. Gently, he raised the leg of the Orthan and began to clean up the blood seeping from the long ugly wound with shrapnel and speaking with the medic. Glancing at Amelia, Rose noted a proud little smile tugging at the girl's lips as she watched her boyfriend. Despite knowing that they needed to move and check everything over, Rose paused to give the other girl a moment.

"You did well with him," Rose observed calmly as she watched Rory accept a device from one of the medics and start to tend to one of the other wounded.

"He's better than I deserve," Amelia told her, shrugging slightly. She took a deep breath and then turned her attention to Rose. "So, time to poke around yet?"

"I'd say so," Rose agreed, gesturing towards the blow in wall. "Security is focusing here and I want a quick look, but I think we should also check the surrounding rooms."

"Right," Amelia agreed with a sharp nod. "The blast was directed at this wall so in theory the bomber could have been in a nearby room."

Nodding, Rose led Amelia over to the carnage of twisted metal and frowned as she looked into the room beyond. Almost nothing on the far side of the room had been disturbed. The long sofa was still in place, only with a faint scattering of dust on it. A table was still in place with a decorative vase still standing and filled with strange bright red flowers.

"That wasn't like a bomb on Earth," Amelia remarked next to her. "All the force was in one direction."

"No it wasn't," Rose agreed with a frown. "Which made it a lot safer to plant."

"But this is just a sitting room," Amelia reminded her. "A public room, everyone has access."

"Let's check out some of the other rooms," Rose suggested, tugging Amelia away from the carnage and the bodies that were being covered for removal. "Maybe some staff saw something."

In silence they moved out of the open doors and into the corridor, staff were still moving around quickly, rushing around and Rose was certain that the communications room was a mess. Walking a few feet they came to a small meeting room across the hall from the sitting room. It was a small room with a long table in the center with six chairs. A long sofa was at one end and small tables were set up near the reclining furniture.

"I'm assuming that I gave you the translators," Rose commented as she and Amelia walked into the small room.

"Recent in fact," Amelia remarked. "We visited Durmino about ten years into the future a few months ago. They're common within the Empire so the Great Star Knight had no trouble getting a couple for while we were traveling around Earth."

"Good to know," Rose muttered as she looked around. "But I missed it when I met you, I didn't even think about how you were understanding what was happening." Rose ran a hand over her cheek and down to her chin with a frown. "That's not good."

"You can't always notice everything," Amelia told her warmly. "Besides, you've been more concerned about Rory and I than little details."

"But is in the details," Rose argued turning to face the young woman. "It's the little details that make up the whole of the big picture." Rose nibbled at her lip. "The thing is… that bomb went off just as things were at a pivotal point. I'd calmed everyone down and we were at the heart of the issue and Alenica was about to respond."

"You think someone was watching and triggered the bomb?" Amelia sought to confirm.

"Yeah, but if for the moment we say that it wasn't someone in the room via remote control then they were either nearby or using surveillance." Rose paused and rubbed her jaw in frustration. "Maybe both, with those ships in orbit and the security in place for this conference I can't imagine someone being able to use anything to too long a range, otherwise they'd be detected. But then again, I don't know much about the technology out here."

Rose sighed and shook her head, wondering if she'd seem something and missed it earlier. A bombing at a negotiation was certainly a nightmare on Earth and if the Durminos blamed the Etheians then Rose doubted that the Orthans would be able to keep the fleet from vaporizing the planet. Moving further into the room, Rose started looking around for anything that was out of place.

"Ever had something that you couldn't put your finger on and it just drove you spare?" Amelia asked, nibbling at her lip and glancing around nervously.

"Of course," Rose replied as she gently titled the chairs, looking for anything out of place. "For instance, when the Silver Lord took over my mind he turned my journal of my adventures and the Doctor blank, but when it was all over everything was back. Took me awhile to even notice that. I don't know caused that."

"That was probably the Trickster," Amelia told her as she moved over to the wall and ran her fingers over one of the seams in the wall. "When you agreed to the engagement he got enough power to tweak a few things, but when you withdrew your agreement then everything went back to normal."

"So you know about the Trickster?" Rose asked carefully, unsure if she really wanted to know if the Trickster was still tormenting her in the future.

"I know of him," Amelia answered with a smile. "That's all I'll say on that subject."

"Really? You've been revealing a lot of things since we met," Rose pointed out.

"I was pretty much raised by Time travelers," Amelia laughed. "I have a pretty good idea of what to reveal and what not to reveal."

"But I didn't tell you about this meeting?" Rose sought to confirm.

"You'd told me that we met when you were younger and I was older, but no specific details." Amelia huffed and pushed off the wall. "Your timeline drives the Doctor around the bend."

A smile tugged at Rose's lips despite the seriousness of the situation they were in. He rarely complained about it to her face right now, given that he was helping to make it a mess, but she could easily imagine him whining about it at a later date.

"I don't think there is anything in here," Amelia announced a few minutes later, pushing a chair back into place. "Our bombers may have used a different room to watch from."

Nodding, Rose followed the younger woman out of the room, glancing over her shoulder and wondering if she was missing something. They stepped back into the corridor, but things were already quieter. In front of them the sitting room door was open and Rose noted several uniformed Orthans moving through it carefully. Amelia reached over and tugged on Rose's hand to guide her to the next set of doors.

Glancing into the next room, Rose caught sight of a flash of red and stopped. She peered into the room and saw a tall creature that she did not recognize. It had two legs and two arms like herself, but its head was tall and shaped like an arrowhead. Thick red skin with folds across its chest was covered in what looked like suction cups. Rose blinked in surprise and the creature moved around the corner of the small room and out of view. Without thinking, Rose moved to follow it, stepping to the room and quickly moving around the corner towards a second door, ignoring Amelia rushing after her.

She stepped out into the hallway only to find several people walking through it quickly. All of them were clearly Etheian, Orthan or Durmion with no red skin in sight. Looking around quickly, Rose frowned and looked for any sign of the mysterious alien. Something about it was familiar…

Stepping back into the room, Rose pulled out her phone and moved away from the doorway. Behind her, Amelia hit the button to close the door and waited patiently. Rose gave her a small smile and a grateful look. Hitting the proper contact, Rose brought the phone to her ear and waited.

"Hello Rose," the warm familiar voice of Sarah Jane Smith greeted.

"Hi Sarah Jane," Rose replied, smiling a little. "Hey quick question. I sort of remember you telling me about a race of aliens with red skin and suction cup looking formations on their heads, down their torso and down their arms. Does that sound familiar to you?"

"That sounds like a Zygon," Sarah Jane replied instantly. "Rose you need to be careful. I came across them in Scotland-"

"Right," Rose exclaimed, "That was the Loch Ness monster story."

"They are metamorphic," Sarah Jane continued sharply, her voice taking on a serious and worried edge. "And they are stronger than humans so be careful."

"Metamorphic how?" Rose asked her eyes darting around with worry.

"Uh…" Sarah Jane groaned as she searched her memory. "They use body-print technology. The source of the biological information and memory is kept in a receptacle. I don't know how close it would have to be, but the Doctor did remark that in time they might improve the design."

"Okay, thanks."

"Wait!" Sarah Jane snapped. "What is going on? Where are you?"

"Oh this isn't on Earth," Rose assured her with a chuckle. "I'm on Rethilan Prime helping with some negotiations that it looks like the Zygons want to stop."

"Rethilan Prime?" Sarah Jane repeated slowly before she sighed loudly. "Well then one more thing that might be useful is that the Zygons were trying to get a foothold on Earth to turn it into a colony. Apparently they aren't very fond of their own planet or fire for that matter."

"Actually that is helpful," Rose told her as she thought about the information. "These negotiations could be a threat to a Zygon operation on Etheia. And I think I can work with the fire thing. "

"Wait? Rose what is you into this time?!" Sarah Jane demanded.

"I'll explain later, but I've got to go. Give Luke and Johnny my love," Rose said quickly before ending the call and shoving the phone into her pocket. She turned to Amelia and smiled slightly. "Well I've got good news and bad news."

"Let me guess: the good news is that it wasn't any of the species here who set the bomb and the bad news is that there are uninvited guests looking to mess this up." Amelia raised an eyebrow and added, "Oh and judging from the metamorphic comment they don't look like other aliens."

"You've got the situation pegged," Rose agreed. "But I've got a plan beginning to form."

"Right, cause that's always a good thing," Amelia teased earning a dark look form Rose.


	5. Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Zygons Move

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Five: Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Zygons Move

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Again sorry for the wait, I'm officially unemployed again so if nothing else I'll probably be writing more. Silver lining and all that. Thanks as always for your great reviews and feedback on how the story is going. This is a shorter chapter due to pacing, but the next chapter will wrap up the episode.

Rose had to admit as she started laying out her plan that Amelia had a point and the ginger knew it judging from the smirk that had yet to vanish from her face. This had both the potential to work and the potential to crash and burn horribly. Thus reinforcing why plans were such a rare thing in the life of anyone who knew the Doctor.

"So you want to do what exactly?" Amelia asked slowly with a doubtful expression, a raised eyebrow and crossed arms.

"We need to expose the fact that we have an unwelcome alien amongst us," Rose explained, resisting the urge to nibble on her lip. "Sarah Jane says that they are scared of fire so exposing everyone to flames may give us a way to expose them."

"The problem is that just about every alien I've ever met is afraid of fire," Amelia pointed out. "It's a part of their biology. Fire is good in small amounts, but too much of it harms just about everyone."

"I'm not suggesting having everyone shove their hands into an open flame," Rose defended quickly, straightening up with a frown. "But maybe we could set up a fire wall of some kind and observe. Those frightened of fire are certain to back away even if the flames are safe."

"Maybe," Amelia agreed carefully. "But we have to convince the others to let us do this. I know that the Princess and Markin like you and all, but there is no proof. I can't see the other aliens just letting the humans set up something like that, even if one of them is the Star Knight. Every negotiation I've ever attended, well attended and paid attention to, was always trying to keep up a show of strength."

"True," Rose admitted with a frown, wondering just how many negotiations Amelia got dragged to. She knew the Doctor helped with peace talks from time to time, but wasn't exactly a habit of his. Maybe that meant that in the future she got better at this and was the one doing them. Rose banished that stray though and focused. "We need to find something that gives credit to the idea that there is another species here. Something that doesn't belong."

"What else did Sarah Jane say about the Zygons?" Amelia asked thoughtfully.

"Their copy technology may or may not have a range, it sounds like they have to be pretty close to the person they are copying," Rose explained, nibbling at her lip lightly as she thought.

"So the original people may be around here somewhere," Amelia pointed out happily.

"That's possible," Rose agreed, "But this whole place is being searched by security so it can't be anywhere too obvious." Rose frowned and this time did nibble on her lip. "But something is still bothering me about the room where the explosion happened."

"Tell you what, I'll get Rory and we'll start searching," Amelia offered with a smile. "You go and poke around until you figure out what it was you saw earlier."

Rose gave Amelia a confused look and the younger girl laughed. "Trust me on this Rose, you saw something earlier, but didn't know what it was. You always notice the important things. That's one of the reasons you and the Doctor are so good together." Amelia gave her a soft smile and added, "You see the small things and he uses them to see the big picture. You two are just a pair like that."

A soft flush rushed across Rose's cheeks and she couldn't help the pleased smile that tugged at her lips.

"Okay, let's try to find some evidence of the Zygons and then we'll take it to Alencia and Markin for help in identifying the Zygons," Rose said with a determined smile.

It was easy to saw, but a little harder to do in practice Rose realized as she stepped out into the corridor. Amelia gave her a wide encouraging smile and a little wave. It was odd having someone around who knew you so well in their future, considered you so important to them and was nuging you in the right direction. Something about the way that Amelia acted towards her reminded Rose of Astra for some strange reason. Shaking her head, Rose sucked in a deep breath and told herself to focus. She couldn't afford to be distracted, she needed to be calm and work this through.

As she walked down the corridor back towards the bombed room, it hit Rose that this was her first adventure since her almost wedding. Swallowing thickly, Rose wondered if that was way she felt slow and sluggish… was she still feeling upset about the Silver Lord?

"Pull it together Tyler," Rose muttered, straightening her back. "Find the Zygon technology and save this conference. That will make you feel better about life, the universe and everything."

A soft chuckle escaped Rose at her own words, but she felt a bit better and stepped into the bombed room. Not much has changed, some of the dust from the explosion had been swept up for testing and a couple of security officers were examining the hole in the wall. Rose's eyes traced the blast pattern, but it didn't mean much to her. All it told her was that the blast had indeed come from this room and traveled through the wall into the main conference room. A flash of colour caught Rose's eye as she stated to turn.

Blinking, Rose tilted her head slightly and stepped towards the vase. The bright red flower was still in place and shimmering slightly in the light. Nearby she heard one of Markin's security officers grumble to a Durmino in a low voice about no evidence. Rose tried to ignore them and studied the flower carefully. It had very thick red petals that triggered something in her memory. Gasping softly, Rose pulled out the sonic peen and lifted up one of the long petals to reveal tiny suction cup looking features on the underside.

"Excuse me," Rose called to the Orthan and Durmino. When they turned to her, Rose sidestepped to reveal the flower. "Do you know this kind of plant?" Rose asked carefully, trying to sound casual, but failing terribly.

"A flower?" the Orthan scoffed giving Rose an irritable look. "I am aware that Markin and the Princess hold you in high regard, but this is serious. If you want to know about the decorations speak with the aide in charge of the complex, not with us."

The Durmino however frowned at the question and stepped forward to look at the flower before glancing back at Rose. He must have read something in her expression because he shook his head.

"I am afraid that I am not familiar with this plant Lady Star Knight. Is it important?"

"Everything is important," Rose replied as her eyes went back to the flower with a suspicious look. "It's just odd is all," she added quickly with a forced smile before nodding to the rude Orthan. "I'll find one of the staff, thank for your help."

Gaining a surprised and confused look form the Durmino, Rose spun on the heel of her boot and strolled out of the room. She couldn't help but smile a little as a split sense of relief and urgency settled on her. Relief because Rose was certain that she'd found what the Zygons used to trigger the explosion and spy, but urgency because now she had to wonder if they had seen her discover the flower.

Rose walked through the hallway quickly until she caught sight of an Orthan in a pale blue outfit that all the aides were wearing.

"Excuse me," Rose called speeding up to catch the aide. They turned towards her with wide eyes. In the bright light of the corridor his white marks almost glowed against his dark blue skin.

"Yes Star Knight?"

"In the room with the bomb did any of you put red flowers in place. Thick red ones?"

The Orthan frowned at the question. "I remember seeing the flowers, but I am not certain who put them there."

"Did you see the flowers anywhere else?" Rose asked quickly. "Maybe in another room?"

"No," The Orthan answered, shaking his head. "I do not believe so. I remember them because they were different than what was originally discussed."

"How so?" Rose questioned, becoming more and more certain that the flowers were the key to this mystery.

"Well at conferences such as this we have to be careful what plants are introduced to the environment. Causing a negative reaction due to an allergy or something incompatible with a visiting species would be a disaster."

"So why didn't you removed the flowers?" Rose demanded, eyeing the Orthan carefully.

"I only noticed them this morning," the Orthan insisted, cowering slightly at Rose's expression. "And there was so much to do. I mentioned it to Yethin who said she'd check on them, but then I just put them out of my mind."

Rose relaxed slowly and nodded. She could understand that, it was strange and maybe irresponsible, but an understandable oversight. "So they are not supposed to be here," Rose confirmed getting a nod from the Orthan. "Okay," Rose agreed, stepping back from the Orthan in question. "Then please tell Markin, Princess Alenica and General Vardic to meet me in the other conference room." Rose paused and then added, "And please make sure that Yethin is present at well."

Turning on her heel, Rose began to make her way back to the bombed room, determined to keep an eye on the flower before anything could remove it. She adjusted her wrist slightly as Rose heard footsteps behind her in the corridor. Rose could feel her bracelet thrum with energy, prepared to respond to a mental command.

"Rose!" Rory's familiar voice called behind her. "Wait up."

Her shoulders relaxed and Rose slowed her pace, turning to face Rory with a small smile. Amelia's boyfriend jogged up behind her, his eyes wide and looking slightly worried.

"Rory," Rose greeted. "Didn't Amelia find you?"

"No," Rory replied, shaking his head with a deepening frown. "I haven't seen her at all. The last aide I asked said she was with you."

"She went to find you," Rose explained calmly. "I'm sure you've just missed each other."

"How long ago?" Rory demanded, his voice becoming more frantically. "Because the aide said that they just saw the two of you heading for the lower levels."

"But-" Rose began to protest before her expression hardened. "I haven't been to the lower levels. I didn't even realize that there was a lower level."

"Then she's-" Rory started to saw with widening eye. Rushing past Rose, Rory took off down the hall and before she thought about it, Rose was running after him.

Rory's longer legs made it difficult to keep him in sight as he turned several corner quickly, barely dodging aides and security personnel in the corridors. They turned a sharp corner and Rose spotted a small nondescript door at the end of the corridor that Rory stopped in front of quickly.

"Rory wait!" Rose called, trying to get him to slow down and listen to her. "We have work together."

The door slid open and Rory vanished from her sight. beyond. Rose reached the open doorway to find a small set of stairs going down into a lowly lit room. The sound of Rory shouting for Amelia reached her ears and Rose grit her teeth at him running into danger. Sighing, Rose started down the stairs and kept her sword arm ready. The stairs went down much further than she expected and the lights were coming from circuits running along the walls alongside some kind of piping system. Rose scanned everything quickly, but nothing stood out as Zygon.

When she reached the lower level, she glanced around for Rory, but his voice had gone quiet. It was darker down here as she stepped away from the walls and her eyes tried to adjust.

"Rory?" Rose called softly, waiting for any sound of movement from the darkness. Small flickers of light nearby allowed Rose to see the far wall, but she still couldn't see any sign of movement.

Then there was a strange sound that Rose couldn't identify. It sounds a bit like how putty sounded when the kids she'd babysat for on the Powell Estates played with it. Tensing up, Rose turned slowly to look behind her and felt her sword appear in her hand. Then there was the strange noise again followed by a thud to her right. Rose spun, something hard hit her back. There was a pinch on the right side of her neck and everything went fuzzy.

Rose felt her sword drop from her hand and then the metal flow over her wrist reforming her bracelet. She didn't hit the drop, something had caught her and was dragging her across the room. Yet she couldn't make her muscles move, couldn't think properly. Then she was dropped to the floor, her back sliding down the surface of a wall. There was a small clicking sound and bright light filled the room, Rose's eyes closed on impulse.

"That was easier than I thought," Rory's voice said above her.

Forcing her eyes open with great effort, Rose tilted her head and looked up at him.

He smirked at her, an expression nothing like anything Rose had seen on his face yet. Then his skin almost bubbled, it shifted over his features and slowly took on a new appearance. His height shrank and the form of his body changed. His clothing began to shift, becoming white. Rose blinked her eyes, trying to think properly. When she opened them up once again she was looking at an exact copy of herself, smirking down at her.

"This form should do," the Zygon said, reaching up and running a hand over Rose's face.

Brown eyes considered the real Rose for a moment before turning away and picking up a long strand piece of red vine. The Zygon touched it to Rose's neck and the vine suddenly moved on its own, coiling tightly around Rose. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, but it was too late, as the thick red vine tangled around her, binding her legs together and her arms to her side. In a last desperate effort to escape, Rose brought her sword arm up to her chest and pushed against the vines.

"Try all you want," the Zygon announced. "All of our technology is vastly superior. Organic, connected to our very natures. You haven't got a chance." Then the Zygon paused and frowned, tilting its head thoughtfully. "So Markin, the Princess Brat and the General are supposed to be meeting you. I'd best not keep them waiting."

Panting, Rose watched the Zygon turn on its boots and stalk back towards the stairs. Rose wondered vaguely what she'd been drugged with as her body relaxed against her will, allowing the vines to tighten. Her head was becoming fuzzier and her vision cloudy. The Zygon vanished up the stairs and Rose sighed, trying to remember what she was supposed to be doing. Her head fell back against the wall as a wave of exhaustion overtook her and her eyes slid closed. Maybe a nap would help her feel better.


	6. Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Too Easy

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Six: Treaty of Rethilan Prime: Too Easy

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Alright here we go the last chapter of the opening episode. Thank you for all the great comments and reviews and even your support over my job hunt. You guys are awesome.

"Rose!" a worried male voice called. It sounded familiar, but no name came to mind as Rose struggled to open her eyes. The voice called her name again and Rose made a small noise of irritation. She was tangled up pretty tight in her duvet, Rose realized when she wasn't able to moved her arms.

"Rose! Come on, you've got to snap out of it!" another voice called, this one female and sounding more irritated than angry. It wasn't her mother, Sharon or Shireen, but it was familiar too.

With great effort, Rose forced open her eyes and saw a flickering panel of circuits to her right. That was odd and interesting. She blinked again, this time the black flecks vanished and she could see more clearly. A male voice called again and she felt hands moving over her arms. Her first instinct was to lash out, but then she felt something holding her arms in place and that the hands were trying pull them away.

"Rose," the male voice called again. "Focus, come on we need you. Remember alien conference in danger! Markin and princess Alenica are counting on you."

Maybe it was the names, that magic word in her life aliens or just the urgency of the voice, but adrenaline began pumping through Rose's veins and the world started to clear up a little. Her eyes focused in front of her where she found a young woman with long ginger hair tugging and trying to loosen the thick red vines holding her in place.

"Damn Zygons," the girl muttered and Rose laughed without meaning to. Amelia, this was Amelia, a girl from her future who she apparently had a close relationship with in the future. The girl looked up to meet her eyes, relief and irritation flashing in them.

"Welcome back," Amelia said dryly making the man, Rory, chuckle behind her.

Rose tried to shift her arms, but they were stuck tight. As she moved her wrist, Rose could feel the warm metal of her bracelet on her wrist and relaxed.

"I still have my sword," she announced calmly as a feeling more control settled over her. "Back up and give me some room."

"What if you fall asleep again?" Rory asked with a frown. "We don't know what they gave you."

"I'll be fine," Rose assured him, sounding more confident than she was. At his doubtful expression Rose added, "Come on, surely you know that the Doctor does his best to keep me from getting hurt too badly."

"Even if it means cheating," Amelia added with a soft warm smile. It was odd, how the smile conveyed familiarity, resignation and amusement all at once. None the less, Amelia stood up and pulled Rory back.

Taking in a deep breath, Rose turned her wrist as far from her face and neck as she could. The blade slid out, the metal brushing over Rose's wrist as it changed shape. Red vines fell away as the blade sliced neatly through them. A moment later Amelia and Rory were next to her, tugging the remains of the vines off of her and helping Rose untangle herself.

"That's better," Rory observed with a calmer and more relaxed voice. "I'm not as much a fan of the danger when we don't have at least you or the Doctor at the ready."

Rose wasn't sure how to take that remark, on hand she felt flattered that a future companion would equate her with the Doctor and also more than a little worried by the very idea. Rory held out his hand as Amelia stood back and kicked away some of the vines. Taking Rory's hand, Rose let him pull her up and ignored the part of her that was angry and embarrassed by the turn of events. Lately she'd been feeling that more than she liked, but reminded herself that this wasn't the time.

"What happened?" Amelia asked glancing Rose over for any signs of injury.

"A Zygon disguised as Rory lured me to the basement," Rose snarled as she looked past Amelia down the hall. "Knocked me out with some kind of drug, I'll get checked over later," Rose added quickly seeing that Rory was about to say something. "Next thing I know it looks like me now, but then I fell asleep from the drug." Rose twisted between the two future companions and started walking towards the stairs. "Come on! Who knows that they are doing?"

"Rose! Wait let me make sure you're alright!" Rory shouted behind her.

Reaching the doorway, Rose smirked as she noted the piece of metal that had been jammed into the groove to keep it open. Amelia's handiwork no doubt, after all a rescue mission wasn't worth much if it got everyone trapped. "No time," Rose called over her shoulder. "We have got to deal with this thing before the conference falls apart."

She launched herself forward, running down the hallway and doing her best to navigate towards he raised voices she could hear in the distance. Several aides and security guards had to jump out of Rose's way and then press themselves against the smooth walls to avoid Amelia and Rory. Behind her, Rose could hear Rory and Amelia shouting apologizes and smiled.

Rushing into the secondary conference room, Rose came to a sudden stop nearly causing Amelia and Rory to slam into her. Standing at the edge of the table was the Zygon in her form, wearing the crisp white uniform that Alenica. A stray thought about if she really looked that impressive shot through Rose's mind, but as members of the conference turned and look at her with surprise, she banished the thought.

"Ladies and gentleman that is an imposter," Rose announced as calmly as she could. "A zygon to be exact using metamorphic powers to sneak around the conference. Eariler they caused the explosion to cause distrust amongst you all."

"You are the imposter," the Zygon huffed glaring at Rose. "The representatives and I have been working on outlining the need for Etheia to hold control over their own space and have privacy in their internal matters. I am helping, you on the other hand are barging in and disrupting the conference which we only just got restarted."

"The Zygons like to take over planets," Rose snapped as Markin gave her a suspicious look. "Of course they want Etheia to go the isolationist route, if there is no contact between them and the other worlds then no one will be able to help them when the Zygons move in. hence the need for mistrust, they need the best solution in the eyes of everyone to be ignoring Etheia."

"Etheia is not ready for being a part of the galactic community," the Zygon Rose countered.

"Maybe not," Rose agreed earning an odd look from the Zygon. "But they can't act as if all of this never happened. They can't go back to when they didn't know about aliens for better or for worse. That ignorance is gone and pretending won't bring it back." Rose shook her head and let her eyes sweep the room. "I've seen that, it doesn't help. Maybe what's ahead is hard, but they have to face it and their descendants won't thank them for being cowards about it."

Not the most diplomatic statement, Rose admitted to herself as General Vardic straightened up in his chair and is fellow Etheias looked murderous. The Zygon glared at her before stepping back and gesturing to the security forced.

"Get the alien," the Zygon ordered. "We cannot allow for foreign elements to contaminate the conference and treaty."

"Okay that's something I would never say," Rose countered with a glance at Princess Alencia.

"And we came with Rose," Amelia added speaking up. "Would we be helping the Zygon."

The Zygon turned sharply and glared at them. "They were part of the trap, they are Zygons too. They came to see me this morning…" the Zygon looked confused sorting through Rose's memories with limited success based on the expression. "Yes they aren't really my friends."

"Oi!" Rose snapped as the security officers moved around them slowly. "Enough of this!" Rose held out her arm, showing her golden bracelet.

"Don't be excited," the Zygon mocked, showing their own arm and bracelet. "Zygons copy anything that has skin contact."

"Apparently your ability to sort my memories isn't very good," Rose mocked with a growing smile. "Otherwise you'd know that mine does this." A moment later the bracelet shimmered and grew into a golden sabre clutched in Rose's hand.

Princess Alenica jumped to her feet and pointed at the Zygon Rose who looked startled and worried. "That's the imposter, get it and secure it…" Princess Alenica glanced around the table. "Uh I offer my ships brig to hold the prisoner."

"It was a Star Knight that they sought to impersonate," Markin said diplomatically. "I accept your offer." They looked towards Vardic who had a nervous and stunned expression on his face, but he nodded.

"Resume your true form," the guards ordered as they surrounded the Zygon who was glaring at Rose. "Resume your true form," one of them repeated as he pulled out strange looking handcuffs, "or else this may harm you."

Still glaring at Rose, the Zygon's form shimmered for a moment before it grew and changed shape. A moment later the tall red creature with suction cup looking skin stood in its place. Two security guards snapped the cuffs on while a third spoke into a communication device.

"Beware your Star Knight," the Zygon growled. "There's something in her head, something that confused me and misled me." The Zygon's reddish eyes seemed far away, seeing something they couldn't. "The Bad Wolf," it muttered just before it was pulled towards the door leaving Rose a little worried and confused in its wake.

"Was that it?" Rory asked Amelia in a low voice behind Rose. "That seemed too easy."

"Shh," Amelia hushed him quickly.

Rose frowned slightly, agreeing with Rory's remark. The Zygon leaving her with her bracelet had been a terrible mistake and made proving who she was too easy. But then the Zygon's words had her a bit worried… was there still something in her head? But the Doctor and the blue Guardian had seemed certain that everything was fine.

Then she was aware of Amelia stepping up behind her, grabbing her hand and giving it a quick squeeze. Rose relaxed slightly at the reassuring gesture and forced a smile.

"Well the plan to expose the Zygon is no logner necessary," Rose told the assembled diplomats cheerfully. She released Amelia's hand and stepped closer to the conference table. "And we have our bomber. I suggest that we finish what we came here to do."

"I agree," Princess Alencia announced, raising her chin proudly and smiling at Rose.

"Indeed," Markin added, "If the Zygons are interested in your planet then we should not given them further opportunities to damage these talks."

General Vardic nodded, but there was a hint of uncertainty in his expression. As she sat down in an empty seat and gestured for Amelia and Rory to do the same, Rose calmly suggested, "Perhaps first as a sign of goodwill you should brief the general on the Zygons so he can make sure his people are prepared."

If Vardic was relieved at the suggestion and Markin's nod then he did not show it. Instead he calmly nodded and one of his fellows began to take notes. Rose allowed herself to relax slightly at Markin explained that the Zygon were a small time menace in the galaxy who kept trying to usurp planets. Rose noted he seemed more amused by them than anything else, but she supposed when you had battle cruisers like his people had that you probably didn't feel the need to worry about the Zygons.

With the drugs still in her system, Rose found it a bit difficult to focus, but everyone was on their best behavior. Rory kept glancing over at Rose while she did her best not to nod off. She still may have because one moment there was a potential argument brewing that she'd cut off by standing off and the next Princess Alenica and General Vardic were nodding in agreement as an aide placed a long sheet of metal with lettering in it on the table. Alenica accepted a small thin tool that she used to mark the bottom of the metal. Rose blinked, surprised to realize that they used metal to record treaties rather than paper.

Lips quirking into a smile, Rose conceded that for a largely digital culture using metal to record important agreements was probably to signify its importance. General Vardic accepted the sheet of metal and small tool as Rose leaned forward to get a better look at the document. It was shorter than then she would thought. Then it was passed over to Markin who used the tool to mark the bottom. And then to Rose's surprise it was set down in front of her.

With all eyes on her, Rose quickly scanned the document and relaxed in relief. It called for the Etheias to control the space of their own star system with no external traffic into it, but did establish a set time to renew or end the treaty in the future. It also established the clause for communication relays to be provided to the major Etheia power so they could report any violations to their space or potential invasions. For a moment Rose was tempted to ask if she could something like that for the United Nations.

The Orthan aide was holding out the small tool which Rose took carefully in her hand. As her fingers brushed over it, she felt a small button. Holding her breath, Rose lowered the tool down to a black space on the metal sheet. The others had signed their names, titles and planet so after a moment of hesitation Rose pressed the small button and pushed down on the metal.

There was a slight smell as the tool caused an imprint in the metal. More confident that she knew what she was doing Rose engraved her name into the metal, an odd feeling of awe hitting her. Normally her life was stopping invasions or saving aliens in trouble like Markin, but today….

Star Knight Rose Tyler of Earth

Rose stared at her title, name and planet on the treaty for a moment before snapping herself out of her stunned silence. Smiling, she sat back to allow the aide to collect the metal sheet and tool from her. He held up the treaty and everyone began clapping which Rose joined in with quickly.

Then Rory was next to her, tugging on her arm. "Medics now," he ordered in a low voice, pulling Rose up and out of the chair.

Too tried to fight, Rose allowed him and Amelia to steer her out of the room and down the hall to the medical center. Rory pushed her down into one of the Orthans weird pods and told her to sleep. Normally Rose disliked being ordered around, but at the moment that just seemed like a really good idea.

When she woke up everything was much clearer, the fog at the corner of her eyes was gone. Amelia was sitting in a small green chair next to her, reading something off of a digital pad.

"Welcome back," Amelia said warmly as she noticed Rose starting to sit up. "You'll be glad to know that the toxin the Zygon used is out of your system and there won't be any long term side effects."

"That is good," Rose replied as she swung her feet down. "How bad was it?"

"Another hour you could have gone blind," Amelia informed her sternly. "It's pretty nasty stuff. Oh and the infected boil that was forming on your arm has been cleaned up to." Amelia paused, "Seriously Rose a Zygon's poison can kill, you need to be more careful. You're lucky it wanted to keep you alive for information." 

"I know," Rose assured Amelia softly, looking down in embarrassment. "In my defense I wasn't thinking totally straight after it injected me."

"Maybe, but next time you see Rory in the proper time line understand if he's irritated with you. You've been asleep for thirty-six hours."

"Just tell me that the conference went well," Rose begged with a sigh.

"It did, you might remember the signing. The conversation you and zygon had was very insightful according to General Vardic and their threat actually helped push the Etheias into accepting that they need to be peaceful with their neighbors."

"Good," Rose said softly as she stood up and looked around. "Are we still on Rethilan Prime?" 

"Nope," Amelia told her, standing up. Rose noticed that she was actually back in her regular clothing. Glancing down at herself, Rose noted that she was as well and decided not to think too much about when that happened. "We're back at Earth actually. Markin wanted to make sure that you were healthy before he returned her. I think he feels bad about you getting poisoned."

"It wasn't his fault," Rose observed, rolling her shoulders. "Have you got my stuff?"

"Right here," Amelia replied, bending over and retrieved Rose's shoulder bag from the floor and handing it to her. "Ready to go?" 

"Well I do have classes to prepare for," Rose remarked with a smile. "And you two need to get on with your lives in your proper time line."

"There's no such thing as a proper time line around you," Amelia teased with a smile as the medic approached them.

Rose did her best to be calm and friendly through the medical examination even as Rory scowled at her and muttered under his breath. Markin joined them, but said little as he waited for Rose to be given the all clear. Smiling warmly, he offered to show them back to the transport room. As they walked down the corridors, Rose noted that she was getting odd looks. She wondered if it was good or bad. After all she'd stopped the Zygon, but only after it captured her and used her form resulting in her needing medical attention. Rose was inclined to call it a draw rather than a victory.

The transport room was brighter than Rose remembered from their arrival. An Orthan stepped forward and handed Rose a bag before handing similar bags to Amelia and Rory. The other two accepted them without question while Rose glanced down at the small pale blue fabric bag held closed by a series of small buttons.

"Your clothing," the Orthan said, answering her unspoken question.

Accepting the bag, Rose swung it over her shoulder and wondered when she'd possibly wear the white outfit again. Although it did look really good, she'd probably add it to the TARDIS wardrobe the next time the Doctor visited her.

"Take care Rose Tyler," Markin told her with a soft smile as she stepped up onto the platform.

"You as well Markin," Rose replied with a small smile of her own. "And next time, try to send me a warning."

Markin chuckled, the sound warm and rich as it echoed in the transport chamber. He nodded to a waiting Orthan who pressed a series of buttons. A bright flash of light threatened to blind Rose as the world fell away.

The transport wasn't so bad this time, Rose stomach flipped twice, but no bile came up her throat. Her legs shook for a moment, but she was able to stabilize herself quickly and look around. They were in the back alley near her place in Cambridge. Down the alley she could see some traffic passing on the road.

Amelia flattered slightly as she tried to walk, but Rory steadied her. The red head shook her head and straightened up, dusting off her shirt.

"So…" Rose said slowly, bouncing on her feet slightly, a bad habit picked up from her significant other no doubt. "Thanks for all your help."

"You're welcome," Amelia told her with a wide smile. "It was a nice little adventure for us to."

"If you say so," Rory muttered only to get elbowed lightly in the ribs by Amelia. "But it was great to see you," Rory added quickly with a nervous look at Amelia. "Even if you're …. You know younger."

"Thanks I guess," Rose replied with a chuckle. "Time travel is always weird. Brilliant, but weird," Rose told him with a warm smile.

"That's the truth," Amelia agreed before stepping forward and hugging Rose tightly.

Blinking in surprise, Rose nearly stumbled back, but caught herself and slowly brought her arms up to return the embrace. Amelia seemed completely relaxed and calm while Rose glanced at Rory who chuckled at her surprise and discomfort.

"Thank you," Amelia whispered in a low voice. "For everything you're going to do for me."

Rose wanted to say thank you, but the words caught in her throat at the emotion in Amelia's voice. Finally the younger woman let her go and Rose heard her charm bracelet jingle lightly. It gleamed in the sun as Amelia stepped back and pushed a strand of long red hair behind her ears. Rory stepped up next to her, threading their arms together and grinning down at her. Amelia looked up at him and smiled warmly, leaving Rose frozen for a moment as she took in the two of them. A soft smile tugged at the corners of her lips as she watched them silently communicate for a moment.

"We'd better be going," Amelia told her. "Left our luggage locked up at the train station a bit longer than I'd like."

"Where you off to?" Rose asked them.

"Oh, just… anywhere," Amelia replied with a laugh. "We've got a few more months to explore this planet."

"So we're going to use it," Rory finished, tugging gently at his girlfriend's hand and waving to Rose.

Lifting her hand to wave at them, Rose stood silently as she watched the young couple walk down the alley to the street and out of sight, smiling to herself all the while. Then she turned and headed to the main door of her building and feeling lazy entered the lift. As the lift began to rise, Rose leaned back against the wall and chuckled.

"Rory's right though, that was too easy," she looked upwards. "What have you got planned for me next?"

….Coming Soon…

Rose licked at the melting ice cream, enjoying the sugar rush and flavor. So far the visit to Cardiff had been a bust despite the lecturer being an old friend of Ian's. She pouted slightly, Ian had probably known that the lecture on time travel was actually about why time travel was impossible and silly. This was his way of getting her back, Rose was sure of it. Then she heard the familar grinding of the TARDIS and straightened up. Wind whipped her hair back from her face as the TARDIS materialized a few feet in front of her near Roald Dahl Plass.

She stared at the blue box for a moment, wondering just what was happening that he was here. Then the natural question of which Doctor was going to step out of the TARDIS hit her and Rose considered slipping away until she could confirm. The door opened and out stepped the tall leather clade Doctor who was grinning at he looked around. Then his blue eyes landed on Rose and widened comically.

"For the record," Rose said trying to fight back a manic smile. "I was here first."


	7. Boom Town: Unexpected Meeting

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Seven: Boom Town: Unexpected Meeting

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Hello everyone, I'm glad that there was such a good response to the last episode, it was fun to write something so different, but I think it is good to move away from the classic episode type once and while. There is a lot more to come and this episode will only be four chapters long since it is a retelling of Boom Town.

Rose Tyler smiled softly as she accepted the tiny ice cream cone from the vendor and quickly handed him the appropriate coinage. For October the weather in Cardiff was much nicer than she'd been expecting, there was a bright sun overhead and a cloudless sky. The breeze off the ocean meant that it was just cool enough that Rose was wearing a light jacket. Not content to sit down, Rose began to wander toward Roald Dahl Plass, thinking back to the books by him that she'd read as a young girl. Like most she'd read Charlie and the Chocolate Factory which she'd enjoyed and of course Mathilda. She'd only read the Witches once after it had given her a nightmare. Chuckling to herself, Rose made a mental note to reread it now. It couldn't be worse than some of the aliens that she'd seen after all.

Rose licked at the melting ice cream, enjoying the sugar rush and flavor. So far the visit to Cardiff had been a bust despite the lecturer being an old friend of Ian's. She pouted slightly, Ian had probably known that the lecture on time travel was actually about why time travel was impossible and silly. This was his way of getting her back, Rose was sure of it. Then she heard the familiar grinding of the TARDIS and straightened up. Wind whipped her hair back from her face as the TARDIS materialized a few feet in front of her near Roald Dahl Plass.

She stared at the blue box for a moment, wondering just what was happening that he was here. Then the natural question of which Doctor was going to step out of the TARDIS hit her and Rose considered slipping away until she could confirm. The door opened and out stepped the tall leather clade Doctor who was grinning at he looked around. Then his blue eyes landed on Rose and widened comically.

"For the record," Rose said trying to fight back a manic smile. "I was here first."

The Doctor blinked at her and then a wide manic grin appeared on his face. A moment later he stepped forward and swept Rose up in to a hug during which she barely kept her ice cream from dripping on his leather jacket. Grinning herself, Rose inhaled the scent of the Doctor, noting the subtle differences. The hug lasted a moment longer than it should have and then several moments longer as neither of them made any movement to release each other. Rose closed her eyes and relaxed against him, wondering what horror he'd been forced to confront more recently. Then without warning, he set Rose back on her feet and stepped back, slipping his hands into the pockets of his leather jacket.

For a moment Rose was at a loss of what to say, the last time she'd seen this Doctor was during that incident with Section 13 and the Silver Lord. He'd said that he'd block the memories that pertained to their future, but Rose wanted to be careful just in case. Grinning at him, she took a slurp of her ice cream and brushed some hair from her face buying time to figure out what to say.

"So Cardiff Doctor?"

"Don't judge too quickly Rose Tyler," the Doctor replied, leaning back against the TARDIS. "Turns out that there is a space-time rift running underneath this city, prefect for recharging the TARDIS."

"You're making a fuel stop?" Rose repeated, slightly confused at the idea. She'd never heard of such a thing from the other companions, but maybe it only had to be done every few centuries. Or she realized it had to do with the loss of Gallifrey.

"Yeah," the Doctor said, replying to Rose's question. "Twenty-four hours and then it's back off into time and space."

Rose smiled at his energy and nodded affectionately. She stepped forward and patted the side of the TARDIS, thanking the TARDIS for her help against the Silver Lord. Rose had no idea if the TARDIS could pick up the thought, understand it or have any idea to what Rose was referring, but she'd be been so overwhelmed last time that she hadn't thought to. For a moment a surprised and confused expression crossed the Doctor's face, but he shook his head and it was gone.

"So what brings Rose Tyler, Cambridge student and resident of London to Cardiff?" the Doctor asked.

"There was a seminar today that Ian suggested for me given my interests," Rose told her with a cheeky smile. "Time Travel and why it is impossible," she added only to get a raised eyebrow from the Doctor.

"Chesterton suggested it," the Doctor repeated, crossing his arms over his chest. Rose noted that he'd gotten Ian's surname right despite all of Ian's complaints in the past. "Really? What did you do to irritate him?" 

Rose did her best to look insulted, but couldn't help herself as a giggle escaped her. "That would be telling Doctor," Rose remarked with a shake of her head. "But you'll be glad to know that everyone is doing really well. We had a little get together not long ago."

The Doctor looked like he wanted to ask, but didn't. Rose swallowed down the last of the tiny ice cream cone and reached out to snag one of the Doctor's hands. He didn't fight her and let Rose pull one of his arms loose from his crossed arm while she grinned.

"Come on then Doctor," Rose called, tugging him away from the TARDIS. "Let the old girl start charging and I'll buy you lunch to catch up." Rose glanced around, spotting a small tourist booth and a few restaurants. "Got to be a place with decent chips around here somewhere."

Her reward for her remark was a wide manic grin that helped Rose to relax. The Doctor despite being younger than the one she was most familiar with seemed honestly glad to see her. As he turned and started glancing around for a place he was willing to try, Rose snagged his right hand with her left and gave him a friendly smile. Tugging her forward, the Doctor led Rose to a small restaurant overlooking the water that was casual enough that she didn't feel awkward heading in her jeans and jacket. Although the thought made her smile as the Doctor didn't seem worried at all as they were shown to a small two person table and Rose was just left grateful that she hadn't worn her own leather jacket.

"So," the Doctor said once they'd placed a drink order. "How is the raggy old bunch?"

"Raggy old bunch," Rose repeated with a smile. "Oh they are so going to hear about that nickname." When he just grinned, Rose shook her head and sighed dramatically. "Well Sarah Jane and Johnny are doing well, they travel a bit more than they did at first since Sarah Jane's comfortable having Luke stay over at Clyde's. That's a friend of his and someone who knows the big secret," Rose added unable to remember if this incarnation knew that. "Plus Ian and Barbara are happy to take him on weekends so he's in Cambridge from time to time which is nice."

Rose paused and took a sip of her cola when their waitress brought it back and placed her order for fish and chips, smiling when the Doctor ordered the same. "Ace is good," Rose said when their waitress left, "She's staying very busy, but has been putting some more funds towards the Jones' family efforts and Tegan's work for Aboriginals. Last time I talked to them Jo was planning a trip to Australia and was going to stay with Tegan to meet her kids for a few days. No real change with Jacksons, they are staying busy with their orphanage and keep inviting me to visit which I'll get around to at some point."

Rose took another sip and tried to think of who else she needed to give him an update on. "Victoria is doing well, I don't talk to her as much, but she sends postcards whenever she travels with her husband. She visited with Ace last time they were in New York. Mel is… well Mel, you know her nothing ever gets her down. She's been hired for some big programming development and won't tell us anything about it, but seems really happy with it, says it's a challenge."

Leaning back in her chair, Rose observed the calm and relaxed expression that was taking over the Doctor's face. His shoulders were easing slightly and he looked honestly content. "I have dinner with Kate Stewart, the General's daughter not too long ago. He's doing well and is enjoying his grandson's interest in simulation games, apparently they've taken to playing a lot of a War of the Rose's simulation. Kate herself is doing well and says that she's really enjoying working with the science department. Except I dn't expect her to stay in that position too long, she's a natural leader and better organized than Malcolm. I suspect in the next few years she'll get a higher position of authority at UNIT, which would be great to have some less militant minds in charge. Benton is good, he remains pretty calm and easy going, doesn't lecture the science department for our experiments too much. He checks up on me in Cambridge every week or so just to make sure I'm okay."

And so it continued for some time. Rose shared some of her recent adventures, edited when necessary, and decided against mentioning her almost wedding. The Doctor may have mentioned that he'd heard of it before, but the memories were still a bit too raw to share even with him. The Doctor was especially impressed with her recounting of being called to help negotiate a peace treaty even if Rose gave him the impression that it had been Sharon and Shireen with her rather than her new out of temporal synch friends.

The Doctor had been busy as well, not that it surprised Rose in the slightest. As much as he promised that he was on his way to pick her up once she finished school the alien was certainly taking his own sweet time with it. There'd been two tyrants and a group of alien cultists two hundred years ago on Earth trying to unleash their god on the Earth, thankfully it had a dude. He smiled some as he recounted his adventures, but trailed off during one of his stories. His eyes became distant and cold as he lost himself in a memory.

Reaching over, Rose place her hand over his and didn't mention his lapse when he came back and kept talking. Food proved to be a welcome distraction and Rose wondered not for the first time who she was going to handle traveling with this version. The day would come when she'd be done at university and this Doctor who show up to take her off into time and space. But she couldn't kiss this Doctor, didn't officially know nearly as much about him as she did in reality and wasn't someone that he was in love with. It was a temporal mess. Still the chips were pretty good.

The Doctor hadn't seemed very hungry at first, barely picking at his food, but as their conversation grew more energetic he started eating more and more. Rose felt another stab of guilt for delaying her travels in the TARDIS. With that leather jacket of his it was nearly impossible for her to get a good sense if he was taking care of himself. Even after they finished their lunches the waitress was quiet content to let them sit in their corner and talk. Rose did catch a few odd looks from the young woman and the other patrons from time to time. She smiled to herself as the Doctor started describing one of the planets that he'd gone to and played a proper tourist with red ground, gold colored rocks and silvery water under a violet sky.

Then a large man by himself walked past and sat down next to them, unfolding a paper. A large picture on the front page caught the corner of Rose's eye and she turned slightly to get a better look. Rose froze, her eyes focusing in on the image. At first glance there was nothing special about it other than the woman was trying to block her face in the photo. Except Rose knew that face, remembered it from Downing Street. It was a pudgy female face with short blonde hair and small calculating eyes. She remembered that smug expression as the woman looked at her and the others in the protected cabinet post. Rising from her seat, Rose stalked across the restaurant and grabbed the paper.

"Sorry mate, emergency," Rose muttered when the man protested. Thankfully he said nothing else to her, just grumbled something about kids and lack of respect.

"Rose?" the Doctor called with a hint of worry in his voice as Rose slowly walked back to their table. "What is it?"

"I was having a brilliant day," Rose sighed as she sank into her seat and slapped the paper on the table. She pointed to the photo of the woman. "This is an alien, a Slitheen, who tried to turn Earth into nuclear molten slug to sell off for fuel." Rose swallowed, thinking back to the Slitheen's family method of wiping out UNIT forces. "She and her family killed some of my friends. We stopped them but out of almost one hundred people that were gathered to help with the incident only myself and one other survived." Rose sank back against the back of her chair, frowning and shaking with angrily. "One of them had only just survive the Osirian Apep's final attack only to be killed by that… thing and her family." Rose swallowed thickly. "Thought they were all killed when we blew up Downing Street, but looks like she survived."

"You sure its her?" the Doctor asked gently as he studied the photo of the apparent mayor of Cardiff.

"See her prosthetic arm?" Rose asked, pointing the shadowed, but visible false arm on the woman. "I cut her arm off."

"You cut off her arm?" the Doctor repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"She was in her natural alien form," Rose defended, "and was attacking me."

"Slitheen," the Doctor said slowly. "I don't remember that species…"

"That is actually their family name," Rose informed him with a shake of her head. "They're Raxacoricofallapatorian criminals."

"Well then," the Doctor said with a nod. "I suppose we should check it out."


	8. Boom Town: Lord Mayor

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Eight: Boom Town: Lord Mayor

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Hello everyone, I have a job interview next week so wish me luck. Enjoy the chapter.

Rose was tense even as the Doctor held her hand and led her through the streets of Cardiff. He seemed to know where he was going, giving Rose a chance to try and reign in her anger. The only reason she'd been so calm after Downing Street was that she'd firmly believed that her insane plan had not only saved Earth, but avenged her fallen comrades. It was a bitter pill to swallow that one of them had not only escaped, but manage to achieve public officer. Rose had no doubt that the nuclear power plant was some new kind of plot even if the Doctor had cautioned her not to jump to conclusions.

Cardiff City Hall was an impressive stone building that had an air of importance and prestige to it. On any other day Rose would have stopped to admire it, but today she pulled the Doctor up the steps and inside, promptly checking the board for the location of the mayor's office.

"We should check the perimeter," Rose said to the Doctor in a low voice. "Confirm what we're dealing with."

He nodded and they headed back outside where she realized that he was looking at her strangely.

"What?"

"You've been spending too much time around UNIT," the Doctor remaked, trying to sound casual, but Rose caught the worry in his voice.

"I… I'm sorry," Rose replied softly as they stopped in the middle of the side walk. "I'm just… trying not to think about… everyone. They were good people." Rose inhaled and exhaled slowly. "In my worst moments I'm just grateful that Malcolm and my friends in UK Science Division were in the North Sea and then I feel guilty."

The Doctor placed his free hand on her shoulder and squeezed the one he was still holding gently. "That's normal Rose," he assured her, his voice a little rough. "No one would think badly of you for that." When she managed a small nod, the Doctor grinned at her and gestured towards the building. "So perimeter check?"

They circled the building, the Doctor pointing out architectural features to her, earning smiles from the people moving around them. Rose smiled to herself as how much he could blend in when he wanted to.

"That would be her office," the Doctor said, stopping Rose gently and pointing to a large window.

"Looks like a good escape route," Rose replied thoughtfully. "If I go in, I'll be at the front of her office and you're here then she should be able to corner her."

"She might try another route," the Doctor reminded her.

"There's only two of us, so I don't see an alternative to blocking the two most likely exits."

"And if she gets away?"

"Call UNIT in," Rose told him with a shrug. "I'm still amazed that she's here. In order for the infiltration of Downing Street to work she and her family all held pretty important positions. I know she worked in Downing Street, but still…."

"Not really that surprising, if she had good documentation then no problem."

"Still, to go from fugitive to mayor of a major city…" Rose shook her head. "Did her opponents not do any digging on her?"

Rose stopped as a young woman came out, she had light brown hair in a soft bun, but looked confused. A folder slipped out of her hands as she tripped on the stairs, falling forward. The Doctor caught her gently with a grin and after sighing softly in relief, Rose knelt down the collect the documents. But one of them caught her attention, it was a list of people with cause of death marked next to their names.

"You alright?" the Doctor asked the woman.

"I'm fine, thank you," she answered with a grateful smile and a nod. "Sorry my mind was elsewhere."

"Somewhere good at least I hope," the Doctor said with a smile.

"Yes actually," the woman replied with a growing smile. "I'm pregnant and on my way to see my boyfriend."

"Congratulations," the Doctor told her, glancing towards Rose as she slowly gathered up the documents. "That's great news."

"Thank you, I'm Cathy by the way, thank you for catching me. I really need to be more careful now."

"That would be a good idea," the Doctor agreed.

"Are you a reporter?" Rose asked as she straightened up the file and moved to hand it to Cathy.

"Yes actually," Cathy agreed as she took the file. "I was here talking to the mayor about the

Blaidd Drwg Project, it sounds silly but the engineers and many of the workers think the project is cursed."

Rose tensed slightly as her translator shifted the phrase Blaidd Drwg into Bad Wolf and glanced at the Doctor with a hint of worry. 

"Really?" the Doctor asked, his eyes lighting up with interest. "Where did that come from?" 

Cathy looked like she was second guessing herself, but smiled. "Well there have been a lot of strange deaths on the project. The entire team of the European Safety Inspectors died in an explosion due to a sign only being in Welsh, the Cardiff Heritage Committee were all electrocuted in a swimming pool and the architect died in a car crash with the Mayor. She walked away, but he didn't make it. Just last week Mister Cleaver, the government's nuclear adviser was decapitated." Cathy shook her head and nibbled at her lip. "The thing is that he seemed really concerned about some issues with the nuclear power plant, thought it could turn out a thousand times worse than Chernobyl." Cathy sighed and looked down at the folder in her hands. "The weird thing is that the mayor doesn't even seem worried about it, she just wanted to know if I was going to print it."

"Well then maybe you should get on that," the Doctor remarked with a nod before a look of concern crossed his face. "And Cathy maybe you and your lad should take a trip out of town, just until the fuss from your article dies down."

Cathy gave the Doctor an odd look before turning to Rose who did her best to give the young woman a supportive smile. She nodded and with a quick excuse me headed off down the street.

"Well that certainly explains a bit," the Doctor remarked calmly. "And if this Margaret isn't worried about the article then I'd say that she'd ready to launch her plan."

"Then it is a good think the TARDIS brought you," Rose said with a smile before she gestured at the building. "Shall we?" 

"You go in front and I'll mind the window."

Nodding, Rose climbed the steps and entered the government building. She popped into the loo and quickly checked her appearance. She wouldn't pass as a reporter or anyone important, but she didn't look like a street kid by any stretch of the imagination. As she headed for the mayor's office Rose counted down from fifty to stay calm and collected, she'd need it.

She reached the receptionist desk where a tidy young man in a suit sat typing at his computer. He glanced at Rose, clearly dismissing her jeans, well-worn jacket and young age even as he smiled.

"How can I assist you?" he asked in a charming voice.

Rose just smiled and said, "I'd like to speak with the Lord Mayor please."

"Have you got an appointment?" The receptionist asked politely, reaching for a book on the corner of the desk.

"Afraid not, she's an old friend of the family and my conference finished early. Thought I'd just pop by and say hello." Rose gave what she hoped was a charming smile. "Dad would never forgive me if I didn't."

"Well, she's just having a cup of tea," the man said with a hint of uncertainty.

Rose glanced down at the name plate: Idris, interesting name. Probably Welsh she decided. She kept her smile intact and said, "Could you please just go in and let her know that Rose Tyler is here to see her."

Idris hesitated, but slowly rose from his seat. "Hang on a tick," he told her as he reached for the door.

Rose dropped her arm to her side, trying to appear calm even as she prepared herself to call for her sword. It wouldn't be great to do in a building with cameras, but Benton would probably forgive her, probably. Then from inside the room Rose heard a tea cup shatter and couldn't help but smirk.

Idris came out the door, clearly unnerved with beads of sweat slipping down the right side of his face. "The Lord Mayor says thank you for popping by," he stuttered out. "She'd love to have a chat, but, er, she's up to her eyes in paperwork. Perhaps if you could make an appointment for next week?

"Out the window it is then," Rose remarked calmly, striding past the shaken young man and into the office.

The large window was open and Rose ran to it, poking her head out to see the heavy weight Margaret rushing down the balcony. Behind her Rose could hear Idris moving and didn't want to wait to see what the boy would do. She quickly maneuvered out the window and chased after Margaret as Idris yelled at her from the open window.

"Margaret," Rose shouted to her as he alien took off a brooch and an earring.

The Doctor was running straight for her, his long legs giving him an advantage. Rose climbed down the cleaning ladder just in time to join him in pursuit. Then Margaret vanished in a flash of blue light.

"Bloody teleport!" Rose snapped, stopping and putting her hands on her hips.

"Not to worry," the Doctor assured her, pulling out his sonic screwdriver and holding it up with grin.

Suddenly Margaret reappeared, running towards them. She skidded to a stop with a panicked expression, turned and ran the other direction, vanishing again. Then she reappeared again and a smile began to creep over Rose's face as her worry faded. Vanish, reappear. Vanish, reappear.

Finally Margaret stopped running in front of them, panting heavily.

"I could do this all day," the Doctor informed her cheerfully.

"This is persecution! Why can't you leave me alone? What did I ever do to you?" Margaret snapped, her eyes darting between Rose and the Doctor.

Her eyes dropped to Rose's hands and with a smirk Rose summoned her sword. Raising it in front of her, Rose rested the tip on Margaret's chest enjoying the sight of the woman squirming. She raised her hands in surrender, the prosthetic limb shining in the sun.

"Let's see," Rose said slowly. "You killed my comrades, tried to kill me, tried to destroy my planet and the six billion people on it."

"Apart from that," Margaret huffed looking very uncomfortable.

"I need more," Rose asked with a raised eyebrow. "Okay how about several counts of planet death according to the Shadow Proclamation records and a standing warrant from your home planet of Raxacoricofallapatorius for bribery, constitutional violations and crashing the economy."

Margaret glared at Rose and the Doctor looked at Rose slightly impressed.

"Come on," the Doctor said interrupting the glaring contest. "Inside."

The Slitheen didn't run as the Doctor led them back inside, but she did mutter under her breath, probably under the impression that Rose and the Doctor couldn't understand her. It didn't take long for them to find a nice empty conference room with a large model on a table and a banner reading Blaidd Drwg. Silently the Doctor stepped forward and studied the model while Rose kept an eye on Margaret.

"So, you're a Slitheen, you're on Earth, you're trapped. Your family get killed but you teleport out just in the nick of time. You have no means of escape. What do you do? You build a nuclear power station. But what for?" the Doctor asked, turning back to look at Margaret.

Turning to the Doctor, Margret forced a neutral expression and said, "A philanthropic gesture. I've learnt the error of my ways."

"And it just so happens to be right on top of the rift," the Doctor replied, clearly not amused.

"What rift would that be?" Margaret asked and Rose glanced towards the Doctor, wanting to understand more of what was going on.

"A rift in space and time," the Doctor explained. "Pushes and pulls energy from all over the universe. Very delicate in reality." He turned and gestured towards the plant. "This station is designed to explode the minute it reaches capacity and when it does this planet gets ripped apart."

"And that's what those people found out," Rose hissed at Margaret. "The inspectors, the heritage center, the architect and that professor, they noticed that something was wrong so you killed them."

"No in London noticed?" the Doctor asked with a frown. "No one investigated the series of deaths expect a local newspaper woman?"

"We're in Cardiff. London doesn't care. The South Wales coast could fall into the sea and they wouldn't notice," Margaret informed them with a laugh before an odd expression crossed her face. "Oh. I sound like a Welshman. God help me, I've gone native."

"So what the escape plan this time?" Rose asked eyeing Margaret suspiciously. "You've got to have one. After all you left your family to die."

"In an missile strike that you caused," Margaret hissed.

"I warned you," Rose reminded her. "I told you to leave, I told you that if you didn't I'd stop you. You can claim all sorts of things, but never claim that I didn't give you a chance."

The Doctor was watching them, his eyes oddly cold and studying Rose in a way that made her a little uncomfortable. She wondered if she had disappointed him somehow, but didn't ask. Instead of saying anything, he reached for the model and pulled up the middle section. Holding it up, he showed Rose a rather odd shaped device that was flat with lots of circuts and small lights on it.

"What is that?"

"A tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator," the Doctor rattled off with a smile. "I'm almost afraid to ask how you got this."

"I have my hobbies. A little tinkering," Margaret said with a shrug earning a doubtful look from the Doctor."

"Let me guess it came through the rift and you collected it?" Rose snorted, giving Margaret a doubtful look. "So what is it Doctor? Some kind of transport?"

"Very good Rose," he replied with a grin. "Word kinetic probably gave that bit away. It's sort of a surfboard actually. You stand on this side and it generates a protective field." He gestured towards Margaret. "When the power plant blew and ripped open the rift it would create a shockwave that she could ride across the galaxy."

"And it would've worked. Id have surfed away from this dead end dump and back to civilization," Margaret huffed, gritting her teeth.

"Destroying my planet and wrecking havoc on countless others," Rose growled, calling her sword and bringing it up to Margaret's chest once again.

"Like stepping on an anthill."

"Give me a good reason not to kill you right now," Rose snapped at Margaret.

"I'm unarmed," Margaret replied smugly, watching the emotions on Rose's face. "You're a warrior girl, I'll give you that, but you have morals."

"Oh don't worry Margaret," the Doctor chimed in as he walked over to stand next to Rose as she slowly lowered her sword and tried to ignore Margaret's smugness. "We're going to take you home. Like Rose said, there is a warrant for your arrest."

The Doctor put a hand on Rose's shoulder, gently pulling her back from Margaret. "How about that Rose, a little side trip to Raxacoricofallapatorius."

"Sounds good," Rose replied, managing a small smile for the Docotr.

"They have the death penalty. The family Slitheen was tried in its absence many years ago and found guilty with no chance of appeal. According to the statutes of government, the moment I return, I am to be executed," Margaret informed them sternly. "What do you make of that, Rose Tyler? Take me home and you take me to my death."

"That's not our problem," Rose told her calmly. "You had a chance to live a quiet life and not hurt anyone, but you instead tried to destroy my planet again. I'm okay with you dying."


	9. Boom Town: Who You Kill

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Eight: Boom Town: Who You Kill

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: Thank you guys so much for the awesome reviews. Those you worried about Rose just keep in mind that as fantastic as she is, Rose has been through a lot of terrible things and only some of it has been addressed. But the Doctor is here to help her. Humans can repress for a long time, but our issues eventually make themselves known.

"That's not our problem," Rose told her calmly. "You had a chance to live a quiet life and not hurt anyone, but you instead tried to destroy my planet again. I'm okay with you dying."

The words were bitter and not completely true, but Rose wasn't going to back down. Margaret had escaped the explosion and then apparently turned around and hatched a new plot to destroy Earth. Rose knew damn well that it wasn't really that hard for an alien to get off of Earth, Sarah Jane had helped too many lost aliens over the years for her to buy that.

Still her own words rattled Rose enough that she stayed quite as the Doctor escorted Margaret to the TARDIS, taking the extrapolator with them under his arm. Rose followed them out of the room, pausing to look over her shoulder at the Blaidd Drwg banner. Sighing softly, Rose really hoped that her future Doctor was right and that it was a sign that everything would be alright. The way that the Ninth Doctor had been looking at her had Rose feeling nervous, frightened and ashamed.

Night fell soon after they reached the TARDIS and to Rose's surprise the Doctor seemed very calm about having Rose watch Margaret while he lowered himself into the bowels of the console room. Margaret circled the controls with a greedy and awed expression.

"This ship is impossible. It's superb. How do you get the outside around the inside?"

"Like I'd give you the secret, yeah," the Doctor huffed, from his place under the controls with the extrapolator. From what Rose had gathered he was

"I almost feel better about being defeated. I never stood a chance. This is the technology of the gods," Margaret breathed as she reached towards one of the control only to have Rose step towards her with a warning expression.

"Sorry, but defeating you was all Rose," the Doctor replied, sounding a bit pleased from under the console. "

"Well I did use the superphone," Rose admitted, forcing her voice to sound lighter and more cheerful than she really felt. "And you gave that to me so I can't claim all the credit." Spock had helped too of course, but Rose wasn't going to talk about him in front of Margaret, just in case.

Rose kept her eyes on Margaret as she moved closer to the Doctor. "So what are you doing with the extrapolator? Is it compatible with the TARDIS."

"Not compatible exactly, I thought it might be," the Doctor replied from under the grate. "But it is still stacked with power. Hooking it into the TARDIS means that I can cut down the time we have to wait. We should only have about twelve more hours of charging."

"We're stuck here overnight with her then," Rose sighed as she eyed Margaret.

"I'm in no hurry," Margaret chimed in smugly. "So my executioners are stuck with me for the entire night."

"We're not your executioners," Rose snapped at Margaret. "We're delivering to your home planet where you will face the consequences of your own actions."

"You like to talk tough don't you girl," Margaret purred moving closer to Rose. "But I can smell your fear… I hunted you before after all." 

"And I took your arm," Rose snapped back, swallowing down the bile rising from her stomach.

Margaret laughed and Rose could hear the Doctor climbing out from underneath the TARDIS controls. She stood still as Margaret took a small step towards her, trying to keep her emotions in check, but they were a storm of conflicting feelings inside of her.

"You don't like this do you Rose Tyler. Waiting. I bet you're always the first to leave. Never mind the consequences, off you go. You butchered my family and then went back to your little life, am I right? But not this time. At last you have consequences. How does it feel?"

Glaring at Margaret, Rose hissed, "You don't know anything about me. I live on this planet, it's my home. What you call running off to my life means going back to school and my friends and family. And I attended the funerals of everyone you killed. I damn well saw the consquences of Downing Street, I saw the families sobbing for the people that you killed. Worst part is that one of them, a woman named Amina Chalthoum had just managed to survive an encounter with an enemy of mine. An Osirian named Apep, we watched him make someone kill himself and then I cut off Apep's head to stop him from ever hurting another human again."

Margaret's glare flattered at Rose's admission of having killed before. But she recovered quickly and smirked slowly seeing Rose's discomfort. "And did that make you feel better?" Margaret asked sweetly. "Avenging your fallen comrades?"

Then thankfully the Doctor was next to them before Rose could react either by taking a swing at Margaret or crying, she wasn't sure which. The Doctor glared at the smirking Margaret and with one smooth movement grabbed her arm and pulled her into the corridor away from the console room. He snapped few words that Rose didn't properly hear and the TARDIS hummed around Rose. Underneath her hand, Rose thought that the TARDIS controls warmed slightly. The Doctor opened a nearby door, pushed Margaret into the small stark room Rose caught a glimpse of and slammed the door. A quick movement of the sonic screwdriver locked the door and the Doctor turned on his heel to face the pale and shaking Rose. He didn't say anything, just watching Rose for a long minute.

"I..." Rose hesitated as she tried to organize her messy thoughts. "I feel like I failed them. If I'd only been even a couple of minutes faster than I could have saved them. I was standing in the doorway when they died. They were electrocuted and the Slitheen just laughed at them." Rose bit her lip and took a shuddering breath. "I've lost people before, but never that many and never like that... and at the time I just had to focus on stopping them. I thought I did and while the funerals were hard at least Earth was safe and the Slitheen couldn't hurt anyone else. At least that was what I thought."

Rose didn't even hear the Doctor cross the console room. Suddenly a warm strong arm came around her and she was pulled close to the Doctor's chest. Leaning her head against his leather coat and Rose took another shaky breath. "I really... I don't want revenge, but I don't want to be responsible for her hurting anyone else cause I'm weak. I don't want to be responsible for the death of someone who isn't actively trying to hurt me or someone else, but she hasn't changed." Bringing up her arms, Rose gripped the back of the Doctor's shoulder, her fingernails digging into the soft broken in leather.

"I know," the Doctor told her gently as he cradled her against him. "I think about that a lot too. If I spare this person and they hurt someone how much am I responsible for that?" Rose heard him swallow and closed her eyes tightly, angry at herself for bringing up bad memories. "To stay sane you have to believe the possibility of second chances and people changing, but the fear of what happens if you're wrong never goes away," the Doctor admitted in a low sad voice.

Rose nodded, a feeling of relief crashing down on her. He understood and that made a difference. Breathing in slowly, Rose felt her heart begin to slow and dared to open her eyes again. Around the TARDIS hummed softly and she knew that she was safe.

"But you... we can't lose ourselves to that fear," the Doctor reminded her gently. "We're both gonna struggle with it and I can already guess that you'll be helping me with that from time to time in the future so I'll help you with that right now." He chuckled, his chest vibrating under Rose's check. "How's that."

"It's a deal," Rose replied with a sigh, shifting out of the hug. "I'm sorry," she whispered.

"Oh don't be," the Doctor said cheerfully as she stepped back. "Glad to help." He glanced back towards the door and huffed. "Do you mind going out and grabbing something? We better feed her, maybe she'll shut up for a bit."

"Okay," Rose agreed with a small nod of her head. "Cheap fast food or something decent?"

"I've got to eat it too so make it something decent," the Doctor shook his head. "Can't risk taking her out of the TARIDS, no way to keep her from hurting someone."

"Is she secure in that room?" Rose asked nodding towards the door just beyond the console room.

"Yeah, just a little storage unit, usually has some bins, but the TARDIS removed them. Nothing in there, not even access through the walls."

Rose nodded, relieved that Margaret couldn't hurt the TARDIS or anyone else. With a final glance at the Doctor, Rose turned and headed for the main door, grabbing her shoulder bag as she passed the jump seat. It was dark, but still pleasant outside and Rose sucked in a deep breath of air gratefully. For a moment she lingered by the TARDIS after the door closed behind her and looked up at the stars. The lights of Cardiff made it hard to see more than a few, but Rose could still see many more in her minds eyes.

She was relieved that the Doctor understood her reaction and fears. Rose hadn't realized just how frightened she was of losing him. It was also the first time she'd managed to voice her own fears and doubts about some of the things she'd done. Swallowing, Rose thought back to Apep. He'd been defeated and unarmed when she cut his head off. Killing him hadn't been about combat or self defense anymore like the cutting off the Gorgon's head had been. She hadn't realized just how… Shaking her head, Rose shoved the thoughts aside. There was only so much she could deal with at a time. Right now she was going to focus on finding some decent takeout.

The Doctor waited in the console room, his arms crossed and watching the screen. His eyes softened when Rose turned and looked up towards the stars and he relaxed slightly as a soft smile appeared on her face. At least this hadn't completely ruined everything. Turning on his heel, he strode over to the room where he'd shoved Margaret and pulled the door open. Then he quickly caught a dart in midair before it struck him.

"Oh dear me," Margaret sighed from by the doorway. "Don't know how that happened."

"Probably has something to do with a female Raxacoricofallapatorian's ability manufacture a poison dart within their finger," the Doctor replied calmly as he tossed the dart into the hallway to deal with later.

"Ah yes perhaps it does," Margaret replied with a false pleasant smile. "Where is our dear Miss Tyler?"

"Getting dinner."

"Ah my last meal and not even at my favorite little restaurant by the bay."

"Can't risk you getting loose and harming someone," the Doctor told her sternly.

"Well… that is very sad," Margaret informed him as she came closer. "At least you should bother to ask me my real name."

"Fine, what's your name then?"

"Blon. I am Blon Fel Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen. That's what it'll say on my death certificate." Margaret moved forward and lowered her voice carefully. "And just between you and me, as a final resort, the excess poison can be exhaled through the lungs."

She began to exhale, but the Doctor quickly pulled a breath freshener from his pocket and sprayed it into her mouth. He grinned as a disgusted look crossed her face, apparently poison plus fresh mint wasn't very pleasant.

"Nice to meet you Blon."

Margaret stepped back from the Doctor and huffed loudly. "So that's it then, you just ship me back to my planet to die because of what the blonde says."

"You already admitted to the plot at Downing Street," the Doctor reminded her. "Rose nearly killed herself stopping you and then you admitted that you were working to destroy Earth just so you could surf away from here."

Margaret eyed the Doctor and smirked. "Bit young for you isn't she Doctor? You strike me as a very old one, weight of worlds on your shoulders and so… hardened to the suffering of the universe."

"Oh don't try that on me, won't work."

"I'm not as bad as she thinks I am," Margaret argued. "I'm really not. There was this girl, just today. A young thing, something of a danger. She was getting too close. I felt the blood lust rising, just as the family taught me, I was going to kill her without a thought. And then I stopped. She's alive somewhere right now. She's walking around this city because I can change. I did change. I know I can't prove it." 

"I met her," the Doctor told her. "Just outside your office, dropped her files on you and the deaths. That's how we knew what was happening. I believe you."

"Then you know I'm capable of better."

"It doesn't mean anything," the Doctor told her seriously.

"I spared her life."

"You let one of them go, but that's nothing new. Every now and then, a little victim's spared because she smiled, because he's got freckles, because they begged. And that's how you live with yourself. That's how you slaughter millions," the Doctor told her, his voice echoing in the empty room. "Because once in a while, on a whim, if the wind's in the right direction, you happen to be kind."

"Only a killer would know that. Is that right?" Margaret asked with a frown. "Is that what you are Doctor? But you are right, Doctor. You're absolutely right. Sometimes you let one go. Let me go."

"No," he replied simply, turning to walk out the room.

"Does she know?" Margaret asked him. "Does that pretty little thing that you've got feelings for know what you are?"

The Doctor stopped in the doorway, the question striking a cord. Without turning around he inhaled sharply and considered the question.

"Yes," he said calmly. "And much worse she understands."

"What a perfect pair then," Margaret teased vindictively. "What a lovely match."

The Doctor slammed the door and relocked it, planning to lose himself in the extrapolator until they could leave and get this over with. Then maybe he'd put the TARDIS on random for awhile, couldn't risk Rose traveling with him just yet. Not until he moved past…. whatever the hell this was.


	10. Boom Town: Heart of the TARDIS

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Ten: Boom Town: Heart of the TARDIS

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: I continue to get questions on an appearance of the twelfth Doctor and the answer is yes he will appear in this series. However he will be very different as we know that he and Rose go on in life to be married and have a family together.

The TARDIS had provided a table and chair that appeared in a quick flash of darkness. Blon jumped in alarm, making the Doctor smile as he set down the drink carrier and to go bag. He turned and patted the wall of the TARDIS fondly with his free hand.

"Dinner," he said gesturing to the other chair before sitting down in his own. There was a huge desire to leave Blon alone to eat her meal, but he hated the idea of leaving her alone with anything, even a wooden table. This woman was very dangerous and now she was a dying creature, he'd seen far too many of those to not know how violently they could act in their defense.

She took the food, raising an eyebrow as the shrimp scampi that Rose had gotten for her, but after a moment began to eat. The Doctor watched her for a moment before he started eating the baked tortellini. It wasn't bad; he'd forgotten what it was like to eat anything beyond the nutrition bars. The only other time he'd eaten regular food with this body was with Rose and she was out in the console room eating by herself. That thought made him frown in irritation, but he hid it quickly not wanting to give Blon anything she could use.

"Public execution's a slow death. They prepare a thin acetic acid, lower me into the cauldron and boil me. The acidity is perfectly gauged to strip away the skin. Internal organs fall out into the liquid, and I become soup. And still alive, still screaming," Blon informed him, breaking the tense silence.

"I don't make the law."

"But you deliver it. Will you stay to watch?"

"What else can I do?"

"The Slitheen family's huge. There's a lot more of us, all scattered off-world. Take me to them. Take me somewhere safe."

The Doctor noted her statement, promising himself that he'd warn Rose of that. He'd hate for other branches of the family to come after Rose for revenge. They'd never find him, but her… she was far too easy to find. The Doctor barely kept himself from frowning at the idea and forced himself to stay focused on Blon who was giving him a wide eyed imploring look.

"But then you'll just start again," the Doctor told Blon with a shake of his head. "Like you did here in Cardiff."

"I promise I won't," she insisted, leaning forward slightly as if being closer to him might make him rethink his decision.

"You've been in that skin suit too long," the Doctor told her with a subtle hint of sadness. "You've forgotten. There used to be a real Margaret Blaine. You killed her and stripped her and used the skin. You're pleading for mercy out of a dead woman's lips."

"Perhaps I have got used to it. A human life, an ordinary life," Blon said quickly, not denying her crime of killing the woman those skin she wore. "That's all I'm asking. Give me a chance, Doctor. I can change."

"I don't believe you," the Doctor said sternly meeting Blon's gaze evenly. "Yes you spared that girl today, but you're entire life here in Cardiff has been built around destroying this planet. You are a killer Blon, you've proven that."

"In the family Slitheen, we had no choice. I was made to carry out my first kill at thirteen. If I'd refused, my father would have fed me to the Venom Grubs. If I'm a killer, it's because I was born to kill. It's all I know," Margaret countered angrily, her body tensing as the predator in her fought to lash out at him. The Doctor was almost impressed that she'd managed not to.

Then the TARDIS began to shake violently. The Doctor gripped the edge of the table and stood up, only to be almost thrown on his feet. A cry of alarm from the console room made him lunge for the doorway. That was Rose's voice and something was wrong with the TARDIS, she wouldn't know what to do!

"Rose!"

"Doctor!" came a shout back from the console room. "Everything just went crazy!"

Paying no mind to Blon behind him, the Doctor rushed to the shaking console and pushed a few buttons. Everything was too dark and a sickly green shade of light was all the TARDIS was managing. Sparks were flying off the console controls and with his superior eyesight he could see small cracks already appearing on the console.

"It's the rift. Time and space are ripping apart!" He shouted to Rose, "The whole city's going to disappear!"

Rose's eyes widened at his and she looked down towards the extrapolator. Following her gaze, the Doctor jumped below the controls and with several sharp movements disconnected the extrapolator, but the shaking didn't stop. There was too much raw power running through the TARDIS right now, she was linked up with the rift and now the extrapolator. He was an idiot to not have expected something like this, Blon was far too clever.

"Never mind Cardiff, it's going to rip open the planet," the Doctor shouted to Rose.

"What can we do?!" Rose yelled back to him as sparks flew off the TARDIS controls. She had a tight grip on the console, she was scared, but she wasn't panicking. 

Rose was too busy to even notice Blon coming up behind her. As the Doctor came up from under the grating, Blon freed her remaining arm and snatched Rose up around her neck. Gasping for air, Rose was lifted off the ground, her shoulders aching as she grabbed onto Blon's arm trying to keep her neck from snapping. Blon laughed and in the corner of her eye Rose could see the Doctor staring at them with a horrified expression.

"One wrong move and she snaps like a promise," Blon told the Doctor with a smirk.

"I might have known," the Doctor growled.

"Oh shut it Doctor. Put the extrapolator at my feet."

Rose wanted to shake her head, but the Doctor moved forward slowly and lowered the extrapolator down by Blon's feet. His eyes moved up to Rose as he stepped back.

"I thought you needed to blow up the nuclear power station," Rose gasped even as she lowered her hand and tried to summon her sword.

"You call that blasted sword and I break your neck," Blon growled fiercely. "You aren't fast enough to stop me and you know it."

"Rose, don't," the Doctor said sternly from where he was waiting a few feet away. "So this was the backup plan. The extrapolator locks onto the nearest alien power source and open the rift."

"Exactly Doctor, and what a power source it found. I'm back on schedule, thanks to you."

"You'll destroy the entire planet," the Doctor reminded her with narrowed icy eyes.

"And blonde and you with it," Blond cheered as he carefully stepped onto the extrapolator, her heels fitting awkwardly into the openings. "While I ride this board over the crest of the inferno all the way to freedom. Surf's up."

The TARDIS shuddered, the console cracked open spilling bright light out into the console room. Rose's eyes were drawn towards it, somehow it was familiar. There was a soft melody in her head that she couldn't quite remember. Flashes of color and gold danced across Rose's vision and a shock of electricity raced up her spine making her shiver.

"Of course, opening the rift means you'll pull this ship apart," the Doctor announced, his eyes locked on Blon. Rose wanted to look at him, but couldn't bring herself to look away from the light spilling out of the TARDIS.

"So sue me," Blon chimed with a shrug.

"It's not just any old power source. It's the TARDIS. My TARDIS. The best ship in the universe."

The song was becoming louder, echoing in Rose's head with a haunting familiarity and Rose suddenly remembered it. She'd heard this tune while looking into the schism that Thane had made on Earth. That realization frightened Rose enough that she slammed her eyes closed.

"It will make wonderful scrap," Blon mocked even as her eyes were drawn towards the light.

"That light is the heart of the TARDIS," the Doctor told Blon his voice strong and loud in the shaking room. "This ship's alive. You've opened its soul."

"It's so bright," Rose heard Blon say in awe, but she didn't dare open her eyes.

" Look at it, Margaret," the Doctor urged, his voice becoming more gentle.

"Beautiful," Blon sighed, sounding almost happy.

"Look inside, Blon Fel Fotch. Look at the light."

Then the hand holding Rose relaxed and she slipped from Blon's grip. Her legs shuddered as she dropped to the ground, but she stayed up. Without opening her eyes, Rose backed away, feeling her way around the console before she finally risked a look.

Blon was smiling at the Doctor, her human features relaxed and calm. "Thank you," Rose heard her breath. Then she was gone and the empty bodysuit crumpled onto the extrapolator.

The Doctor jumped forward, closing the console before looking over at Rose. "We have to shut down! Rose, that panel over there, turn all the switches to the right!"

Moving to the panel, Rose obeyed the order, vaguely aware of the Docotr rushing around and pressing buttons and flipping levels. Then the shaking stopped and the TARDIS lights dimmed. The Doctor stopped moving and sighed loudly.

"Nicely done," the Doctor said looking over at her and nodding. "The energy transfer has stopped." The Doctor laughed and tapped on the central tube of the console. "Positive thing is that the TARDIS doesn't need to recharge."

Rose nodded, but walked over to the body suit, eying it carefully. "What happened to her?"

Then the Doctor was next to Rose, kneeling down to examine what was left. "She looked into the heart of the TARDIS. Even I don't know how strong that is," the Doctor informed Rose, sounding excited. "The ship's telepathic, but maybe she doesn't just translate languages. Maybe the raw energy can translate all sorts of thoughts." He pulled out a strange looking egg, greenish-brown in color with several odd little hairs growing off of it on one end. The Doctor was grinning. "Here she is."

"It regressed her?" Rose asked, her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open in shock.

"Exactly," the Doctor replied. "She can start again. Live her life from scratch. If we take her home, give her to a different family, tell them to bring her up properly, she might be all right!"

"Or worse," Rose muttered as she reached out and touched the egg quickly before sighing. "But I suppose that will be her choice won't it."

She looked up to find the Doctor grinning at her and couldn't help but smile back. "So next stop Raxacoricofallapatorius?"

Nodding the Doctor stood and held out one hand to Rose. She accepted it with a smile and the Doctor pulled her to her feet. "We'll just stop by and pop her in the hatchery," the Doctor said as he handed Rose the egg and turned to the controls. "Margaret the Slitheen can live her life again. A second chance." He turned to Rose and asked, "You coming?"

Rose smiled in return and nodded. "Yeah," she replied as she looked down at the egg. "Not often you get to see someone get a second chance."

The Doctor nodded in understanding and flipped a switch. The TARDIS shuddered and Rose heard the wheezing noise of them dematerializing.

The Doctor hadn't been joking when he said they'd pop by the hatchery on Raxacoricofallapatorius. They materialized straight into a large chamber with a beautiful vaulted ceiling that looked similar to mother of pearl. Rows and rows of elevated platforms held eggs similar to the one that the Doctor was carrying, but with small coloration differences and slight changes in the arrangement of the offshoots. Humming softly, the Doctor moved into the chamber towards a Raxacoricofallapatorian that was staring at them with wide black eyes.

Rose was thrown by the creature, fighting the instinct to protect herself and the Doctor. Instead the Raxacoricofallapatorian stepped up to the Doctor and calmly asked what he was doing and what he needed. Rose saw the aliens eyes flicker over towards and the TARDIS. Stepping out with a forced smile, Rose leaned calmly against the TARDIS, doing her best to appear completely calm as the Doctor handed the egg to the alien.

"Found this egg, poor thing was abandoned," the Doctor told the Raxacoricofallapatorian with a wide grin. "Thought you might be able to place her with a good family."

"Her?"

"Just a hunch," the Doctor replied with a shrug. "Well that's all, have a good day."

It was really really hard not to laugh at the look of utter shock and surprise on the Raxacoricofallapatorian's face. The Doctor turned back towards Rose with a grin and without a word they stepped back into the TARDIS.

The TARDIS doors closed with a soft muted click behind them and Rose exhaled slowly. Moving past her, the Doctor flashed Rose his manic smile and moved to the console. The ship hummed and the Doctor fingered the console where it had split open thoughtfully. His expression was pensive and Rose wondered what he was thinking. But the moment passed and the Doctor began flipping switches and twisting knobs. A shudder from the TARDIS was all the warning she got. Stumbling forward, Rose gripped the console just in time for the Doctor to tell her to hold down a button.

"So Rose Tyler," the Doctor called, drawing her attention back to him. "What now?"

"Well…" Rose glanced towards the cold to go container that somehow hadn't spilled all over the place. "We didn't get much time to eat, how about chips?"

"Chips?" the Doctor repeated with a surprised expression before he grinned widely. "Chips it is then."

A quick stop for chips later, but in Bristol rather than Cambridge and the Doctor took them back into the time space vortex. Rose was expecting him to drop her off somewhere, but the TARDIS shook softly and came to a stop. With a wide smile, the Doctor gestured towards the doorway. Rose knew that smile even if he didn't know she did. Keeping a tight hold on her chips, Rose walked over to the doors and opened them both.

Just below them was the Earth shining in a rising sun, gleaming blue and green. A soft laugh escaped Rose, glee rising through her at the sight. She glanced back at the Doctor giving him a wide smile before she knelt down and sat down in the doorway, her feet hanging out of the TARDIS, but still in the protective bubble around them. Delighted laughter filled the console room as Rose calmly took out a chip and popped it into her mouth. A moment later she heard heavy footfalls behind her.

"Make you wonder a bit," Rose observed calmly as she munched on the chips and looked out over the Earth. Behind her she could feel the warm presence of the Doctor leaning against the side of the TARDIS door just behind her.

"Wonder about what?" the Doctor asked between bites of his own chips. "Have to be a bit more specific."

"The TARDIS," Rose replied softly. "Did she turn Marg- Blon into an egg because she really did want to change and do better or did she do it for us? To spare us from having to make the decision this time?" 

The Doctor was silent behind Rose and for a moment she was afraid that she'd poked one time too many at his wounds. Then he laughed softly and Rose leaned back to catch a glimpse of him. He was staring out at the Earth and smiling.

"I don't know," the Doctor answered with a soft laugh. "I really don't know." He sounded very pleased by the notion of not understanding what had happened.

"That's okay though isn't it," Rose told him with a soft smile of her own. "Little mysteries making life go around."

"You are a strange girl Rose Tyler," he remarked, but his voice was warm, familiar and pleased.

"You like me that way."

For a moment Rose didn't think he'd actually reply to that remark, expecting a laugh and an announcement that it was time to go. Instead he nodded, his lips slightly pursed and he said, "You're not wrong there."

She had a strong desire to stand up and kiss him, to wrap her arms around him, but they weren't there yet. She loved him, god did she love him, but now things were reversed again. Now she was the one in love and waiting for him to fall in love with her. He would in time, Rose knew that both mental and in her heart, she just had to give it time. And sooner or later he stop knocking about going to get her when she finished school and they could get started on their future properly.

Grinning, Rose turned her attention back to the Earth and pulled another vinegar drenched chip from her newspaper, popping it into her mouth happily. Below them the Earth turned slowly, filled with billions of people going about their day to day lives. Rose would join them again once they were done with their chips and the Doctor would return to bouncing around time until he decided to come and pick her up after university, but not just yet.

…Coming Soon…

Tensing up at the tone of Doctor Matthews, Rose repeated her question. This time Matthews sighed and slowly answering. "Something very strange is happening in Utah by Lake Silencio, time isn't working properly around it. It's like… time is still all of a sudden. It's like its waiting for something."


	11. Hole in Time: Briefing of a Life

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Eleven: Hole in Time: Briefing of a Lifetime

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: A lot of you have remarked on the Wedding of River Song and the Silence storyline. Without giving anything away all I ask is that you go into the episode with an open mind and no expectations from that episode.

Rose Marion Tyler stepped into her apartment with a grateful sigh, stretching out her arms and rolling her shoulders. Her long blonde hair was tied up in a ponytail and she was dressed in light running gear. Grabbing a small towel from her coffee table where she'd left it before leaving, Rose pat dried her face and sucked in a deep breath to relax. It was nice outside now, but there was already a hint of the chill to come in the air. Soon it would be rain all the time and not even decent thunderstorm rain.

Toeing off her sneakers, Rose kicked them over by the door and grabbed a glass of water from the kitchen. She mentally checked off her to do list for the weekend. School was still barely in session so there weren't any papers due, although Rose had already started her research project for Ian's class and two midterm papers just to be on the safe side. Glancing around her apartment, Rose was debating spending some time cleaning when her phone rang.

"Hello this is Tyler," Rose greeted professionally and calmly. Very few people her own age had her mobile number, it was mostly the former companions of the Doctor and UNIT officials who called her phone nowadays.

"Tyler this Doctor Matthews," a familiar female voice said on the other line.

Rose's back straightened on its own at the voice of the United States' Section 13 leader. She remembered the intelligent and driven head of Section 13 and how the woman had helped Rose investigate the strange mutations occurring in New Mexico.

"Hello Doctor Matthews," Rose replied calmly. "How can I help you?" 

"I need you back at Section 13 immediately, a car will be at your apartment in an hour and a jet is waiting at Cambridge Aiport to bring you over."

"What's going on?"

"I know it is short notice, but UNIT headquarters in Geneva has cleared you working with us again."

Tensing up at the tone of Doctor Matthews, Rose repeated her question. This time Matthews sighed and slowly answering. "Something very strange is happening in Utah by Lake Silencio, time isn't working properly around it. It's like… time is still all of a sudden. It's like its waiting for something."

"Time is still…." Rose frowned and after a moment asked, "Can you explain that a bit better."

"I don't really know how to explain it. Time is moving forward, but the closer a person or a thing is to the shore the slower they move. The people we sent in to check took hours just to walk a short distance. And it isn't a gradual effect, we've been able to draw a line that indicates where the effect starts."

"Alright then," Rose said with a nod. "I'll be ready when your car arrives."

"Thank you Tyler," Doctor Matthews replied with a sigh of relief. "We'll be ready for your arrival here."

"And if anything changes-"

"We'll keep you posted in transit," Matthews promised her quickly. "Be safe Tyler."

With that call ended and Rose was left standing alone n her living room with a slight frown. This was big, this was something out of her league. Hitting the speed dial for the TARDIS, Rose raised the phone back to her ear and waited.

"Hello Darling," the cheerful voice of the Eleventh Doctor answered.

"Hello Doctor," Rose replied, suddenly feeling happier and smiling. "I just got called in by Section 13, something is wrong with time around a place called Lake Silencio."

"Lake Silencio," the Doctor repeated, his voice taking on an edge. "I'll be there," he promised without Rose even asking. "The temporal effects may delay me, but I'll be there."

"I love you," Rose added quickly, a sense of worry and dread rising through her. It felt important to say it all of a sudden.

"I love you darling," the Doctor replied gently, his warm voice soothing the nerves a tiny bit. Then the call ended and Rose was left standing alone in her living room. Her stomach was knotted with nerves and a hint of real fear.

The last time she'd flown overseas to help Section 13, she'd gotten the phone call while the Doctor was with her. They'd stayed in bed a little longer and he'd made her breakfast, apparently putting boosters in it to protect her from the radiation that she'd be exposed to during the adventure. This time there was none of that warmth surrounding her departure and she felt a little lost. Shaking her head, Rose shuddered and headed for the toilet. She needed a shower and to get packed, she didn't have much time.

Rose made it downstairs just as the car pulled up to her door, a small suitcase in hand and a backpack slung over her shoulder. The driver was a UNIT soldier that she'd never seen before, but he stepped out and saluted Rose. Deciding not to stand on ceremony, Rose opened the back door herself and climbed in. The soldier pulled the car away from her building and headed towards the airport without a word. Watching out the window, Rose saw the other students beginning to head out and about for the day. She pulled out her phone and went down the list of contact, debating if it was still too early to call.

They were nearing the airport when Rose finally pressed the call button and raised the phone to her ear. A moment later Ian's voice answered the voice and Rose gathered her courage.

"Hi Ian, it's Rose. I've been called to the United States and with the time zone changes and travel times I doubt that I'll be in class Monday."

"I see," Ian huffed, sounding a little irritated. "Rose are you okay, you sound a bit off?" 

"What's happening sounds really bad," Rose admitted. "But the Doctor is going to meet me there to help."

"It must be bad then," Ian muttered thoughtfully. "Okay, if you're not back then I'll report as your advisor that you are ill or something like that to cover for you. Just be careful."

"I will be," Rose promised seriously. "Thank you and give my love to Barbara."

In a rush of activity, they arrived at the airport and Rose was quickly escorted through security with no one even poking at her sonic pen or translator. The jet was small and sleek with stairs leading up into it that folded out of the plane. Rose climbed the stairs as the UNIT personnel waited below at the bottom of them. Stepping inside, Rose was greeted by an older balding man in a black suit who had a slight smile on his face.

"Welcome aboard Miss Tyler," the man greeted, gesturing her to come further into the ship.

Behind Rose the stairs came up and sealed the doorway of the plane as she stepped further into the plane.

"I'm Agent Peters with Section 13," the man introduced himself with a polite nod. "Please take a seat and we'll be on our way."

"How long do you expect the flight to take?" Rose questioned and Peter's smile widened.

"This is one of our newest plane, fitted with some interesting technology that was salvaged from that wreckage you found last time you were with us in New Mexico. The flight time here was only six hours."

"Impressive," Rose remarked with a raised eyebrow. "Why were you already here? You could have given me more warning."

"Actually myself and the plane were here to show the plane modifications to UNIT and exchange some recent research files," Peters explained. "I was originally scheduled to spend some time at UNIT today as part of the effort to partner our organizations more effectivity, but this took priority and you're needed in New Mexico asap."

"Okay," Rose agreed with a nod, moving and sitting down in one of the very comfortable seats surrounding a small table. Peters grabbed and stowed her bag while Rose kept her backpack on the seat next to her.

Peters watched her put on her seatbelt and then reached over and pressed a button on the wall which looked like a small intercom. "We're ready captain, let's be on our way."

"Yes sir," a crisp female voice replied.

The plane began to move slowly and Peters sat down in the seat across the table from Rose and fastened his own seatbelt. At that moment Rose's stomach growled and Rose couldn't help, but blush a little.

"Uh I didn't have time to grab my stuff and eat more than a breakfast bar." 

"Don't worry," Peters assured Rose with a chuckle. "This is a fully stocked plane, once we're up in the air I'll get you some breakfast and show you what we have so far." 

Pleased, Rose nodded and glanced out the window as their plane smoothly moved in front of a waiting jumbo jet to use the runway. A few moments later they were rushing down the runway and then there was the soft jerk of the front wheels leaving the ground. Rose started to swallow in preparation for the pressure change. They climbed into the air very quickly and despite her efforts Rose felt her ear pop as the plane turned in the air letting Rose see Cambridge down below them for a moment before they went above the clouds.

Peters kept his promise, vanishing into the back section of the plane for several minutes. Rose stood up and stretched, looking around the very comfortable, but rather stark seating area. Her eyes landed on a briefcase and a file folder sticking out of it. Her fingers itched to grab it and start reading, but she contained herself and sat back down. Peters returned a few minutes later with a plate of eggs and a small steak. He handed it to Rose and she gave him a grateful smile in return. It smelled a lot better than she'd been expecting and Rose tucked into the meal gratefully. As she expected, Peters retrieved the file folder in question and brought it over to the table. He set it in front of him and opened it with a solemn expression.

"The situation is very strange," Peters informed Rose. "The strangest that we've ever seen. It came to our attention after a family went missing after going on a picnic to Lake Silencio only to return after a couple of hours. To them they'd only been gone for a few hours, time literally slowed down for them." He showed Rose a photo of a very ordinary looking family and she nodded to show her understanding.

"Since then we've been trying to monitor the area, we've sent in a few people who have returned. They don't show any signs of physical changes and every one of them checked out with the doctors mentally and emotionally. Additionally our instruments are still working, but thus far there isn't a set rate to the slowdown. The family experienced hours to days, but the last test had a much closer rate of time."

"Is it consistent around the Lake?" Rose asked with a small frown.

"We're not sure yet," Peters admitted. "For obvious reasons we're having trouble observing whatever is happening, but we have determined that the lake is the center point. The effect lessens the further away from the lake a person is. We've been able to literally draw a line in the sand to mark where the effect begins. That hasn't changed, but the rate of the slowdown keeps changing and we're not sure what to look for."

Rose pushed aside her plate and Peters slide the folder over to her. At the top of the pile was a photo of a lovely sandy beach next to a medium sized lake with rocky formations on the far side. It looked very pleasant, but as Rose glanced at the charts of the temporal distortions and the time that was being lost by anyone who went too close it was very clear that there was something very wrong with Lake Silencio.

Nibbling on her lip, Rose wondered just what it was about the lake that the Doctor knew that had him so concerned. She flipped the pages and caught sight of another photo of people who had gone too close to the lake. Leaning forward, Rose studied the picture, a soft gasp escaping her.

"What is it?" Peters asked with a hint of alarm.

"This man's eyes," Rose said as she turned the photo so Peter's could see it. "Look at his eys."

"They look silver," Peters muttered before shrugging. "That's probably a bad exposure."

"Or maybe it's the Silver Lord," Rose paused and nodded to herself. "Actually I'm sure that's the Silver Lord. He's part Chronovore, he has some power over time."

"And you think he could do this?" 

Rose shivered at the memory of e Silver Lord and nodded. "Peters there isn't a lot that I think he can't do."


	12. Hole in Time: Return to Section 13

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Eleven: Hole in Time: Return to Section 13

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

AN: To address some concerns: the Silence movement will be appearing the future, this season in fact with a very altered history and purpose due to unfolding events. For this episode, Lake Silencio was supposedly a 'still point in time' and that was something that I imagined other beings might take advantage of. The longer the alternate reality exists the more some things are going to change.

The flight was smooth and pleasant for the most part. It was nice to not have to stop over in New York City this time and she learned a bit about Peters. He wasn't a pleasant and talkative about his family as her first escort Peterson had been. However Rose did learn that he was a bachelor and married to his work which he loved with a rare passion. Rose hoped that he'd have time to get to know Malcolm a bit, she imagined that the two of them would become easy friends.

Two phone calls came in while they were in flight, both reports on the passage of time in the bubble that seemed to have formed around the lake. Peterson informed Rose that an effort to fly over with helicopters had observed the same effect. They'd even been sent a short video of the helicopter flying over the lake and almost stop moving. The second phone call when they were nearly to Lake Silencio that had been taken over was the report that the helicopter had finally left the bubble and all the crew were safe.

Swallowing and yawning, Rose forced her ears to pop as they descended over the desert. She looked out her window and out across the expanse of pale sun bleached ground and tufts of vegetation. Somehow it seemed even drier and the ground looked redder than she remembered New Mexico being. Even from the plane she could see giant rock structures and made a mental note to have the Doctor bring her here under better circumstances, it looked amazing.

The plane bounced as they touched down and Rose gripped the armrests calmly. Peters looked less comfortable, but then he didn't have travel in the TARDIS to compare the landing to. Of course the TARDIS traveled through time and across planets in moments so she was always superior. They moved across a small airstrip and into a large hanger. Rose watched out the small window as men and women in United States Air Force uniforms moved around the plane.

"Well here we are," Peters observed as he stood up and straightened his suit jacket. "Welcome to the old Silenico Air Force Base, it has been closed for ten years, but we've gotten it back in somewhat working order."

Nodding, Rose unbuckled her seat belt and stood up. She grabbed her bag as the plane's interior door was unfolding and opening the stairs. Peters reached up and pulled out her rolling bag with a small smile. He turned and headed for the stairs, pausing to say thanks to the pilot that Rose had not even seen. A few moments later they were outside the plane in the hanger as Rose sucked in several deep breaths.

"You alright?" Peters asked with concern.

"Yeah, just trying to breath. There's a big difference between living in England and the Utah desert."

Peters chuckled and nodded his understanding. "I see, well come on Miss Tyler. Doctor Matthews is waiting for us inside."

The base was fairly small by Rose's standards with only a few small main buildings standing a ways away from the hanger. The closest of these was only two stories high with small Spartan looking windows and made of gray stone. It was distinctly unwelcoming in Rose's eyes. There were three main building in total with a few small housing buildings visible nearby. The entire area was surrounded by a tall fence with barbed wire around the top and she could see a guarded entry gate. As Peters led her towards on the a small green jeep, Rose noticed that they were stared at by the uniformed personnel moving around the base.

"Please excuse them," Peters told Rose as they walked over to a small parked car. "This is usually a simple training base, nothing interesting happens here most of the time. I'm afraid the sudden arrival of so much equipment and outside personnel has made things a bit strange here."

"I understand," Rose replied politely. It made sense she supposed, after all if UNIT or Torchwood ever had to bunk up with the normal British military forces things might get a little tense and strange. Especially if it was Torchwood, Rose couldn't imagine Hartman being anything but a nightmare to the poor Colonel stuck with her. The thought nearly made her laugh.

Peters lifted Rose's suitcase into the back of the jeep and gestured for Rose o climb in. Without a word, she hoisted herself up into the passenger side of the jeep and couldn't help but smile a little. She suddenly felt like she was in one of the old world war II movies. UNIT had jeeps, but none without roofs like this one. Peters climbed into the driver's side a moment later and then they were off, following the large roadways towards the largest of the buildings.

The closer they got the building the more nervous Rose felt. It was a large square building with small stacked and racked windows that were not at all friendly. The grey color of the building almost seemed to fade all the colors around it and with red and blue mountains in view behind it, that was saying something. Peters parked the jeep in front of the building and Rose saw more uniformed U.S. Airmen standing guard outside the main doors. Paying them no mind, Peters pulled Rose's bag out of the back and waited for her to climb out. He said nothing as they walked past the guards, one of which leaned over to open the door for them.

Stepping inside, Rose took a deep breath of relief as he air conditioned air hit her face. Then she took in the main room, it was fairly large, but the floors looked like concert and the walls were grey and dull except for the splash of color added by the U.S. flag and a photo of the U.S. President. There was a heavy wooden desk in front of the doorway where another man in a suit was sitting. He nodded to Peters and glanced at Rose with a hint of curiousity.

"This way," Peters said, his voice low and professional to Rose.

Nodding, Rose followed him as Peter led her into a corridor leading off the main room. It seemed to go on forever before they came to door with a guard standing in front of at the end of the corridor.

"Doctor Matthews is waiting inside," the man guarding the doorway said formerly. He was dressed like Peters, wearing a suit instead of a uniform so Rose guessed he was with Section 13. "She wanted to see you as soon as you arrived."

"I'll deliver your things to your quarters," Peters informed Rose gently. "Good luck Miss Tyler."

"Thank you Peters," Rose replied politely with a small smile.

Stepping forward, Rose pushed open the door and stepped into the office. It was odd seeing Doctor Samantha Matthews in the small cramped office, the woman was a little taller than Rose with olive skin, shoulder length wavy dark hair and brown eyes and had a presence that made the office seem confined.

"Rose Tyler," Matthews greeted with a relieved smile. "Welcome back to the States. I hope the flight was pleasant."

"Yes it was, your new plane is very impressive," Rose replied politely.

"Thank you, we're hoping that we can make it more energy efficient in the next couple of years and then release the design. Making air flight faster and cleaner would certainly be a good step forward."

Rose had to smile, she liked Doctor Matthew's down to Earth concern for the entirety of the world. Like Hartman her loyalty was officially to the United States of America, but unlike Hartman she had the good sense to recognize that arming the nations of the world with alien technology was a bad idea and recognized that invading aliens rarely worried about boarders.

"I'm glad to hear that," Rose told her with a smile before she turned serious. "Where do you need me?"

Doctor Matthews smiled slightly and nodded to Rose. "Follow me please."

They stepped out into the long grey corridor Rose had just come down, the only color in the place seemed to be the red white and blue of the U.S. flags scattered around the place. Even the maps hanging on the walls seemed devoid of color.

"Swanic is here, but Danielle and Michael remained in Las Vegas for school," Matthews informed Rose calmly as they stepped into a larger conference room. This room had a little more color with a large polish wood table. A large window on the far side opened out over the desert. In the distance Rose could see a shimmer of blue, guessing that it was Lake Silenco.

"Give them my regards," Rose told Matthews with a smile, turning her attention back to the older woman. "Once this is all over."

"Once this is over," the deep voice of Swanic huffed behind them. "Once this is all over!?"

Rose turned to see the tall alien male with unusually pale skin and violet eyes stomping into the room. He had a long lab coat on, a pair of glasses perched on his nose and his hands in his pockets. For a moment he reminded Rose of an irritable child she babysat for on occasion at the Powell Estates.

"Hello Doctor Donovan," Rose greeted with a small smile.

"Tyler," Swanic replied with a nod, but no smile. "Any chance that Doctor of yours is coming this time?"

"He's supposed to meet me here," Rose replied with a glance towards Matthews whose shoulders visibly relaxed at her statement. "But its hard to say when exactly he'll arrive. That sort of depends on the TARDIS."

"But he's coming," Swanic said with another nod, pacing slightly in the small open space of the office. "I not sure if that's a good sign or a bad one. On one hand it means we get his help dealing with whatever this is, but it also means that its bad enough that he needs to come and help."

"Have there been any new developments?" Rose asked looking at Matthews.

"Not so far, we've cleared out the area a bit to give the bubble some room, but it doesn't seem to be expanding any further. Honestly I'm suspecting that there is some kind of alien technology at the heart of this," Matthews informed Rose. "I understand that there was something similar to this at the Gate of the Sun in South America some time ago."

"Yes," Rose agreed, shivering slightly at the memory. The Silver Lord had been there too. "That is correct, but that time bubble was meant to hold a dangerous creature in place until the full cronovore could be locked away again. Rose still wasn't certain as to just what had happened to resolve that situation. "Unfortunately I think that they may be the work of the powerful alien, the Silver Lord." 

"The Silver Lord," Swanic repeated with a frown. "Isn't that one you almost married?" 

Rose's eyes widened and Matthews flinched in the corner of her eye at Swanic's blunder. She guessed that Swanic wasn't supposed to reveal that he knew that. Rose suddenly felt very exposed and vulnerable, something she didn't like at all.

"Yes, he used an advanced form of mind control on me," Rose explained as she clenched her teeth. "Does everyone know about that?"

"I'm afraid that when it comes to you the international rumor mill tends to work overtime," Matthews confessed. "Especially since after that happened your Brigadier Benton requested to review our files over your last visit here since that was one incident of your exposure to the Silver Lord."

"Great," Rose muttered, rubbing the back of her head. "Just great."

"Anyway," Swanic said, his violet eyes darting between them. "I was about to head down to the lake again, would you like to come Tyler?"

Rose glanced over at Matthews who made a small nod of agreement. Turning back to Swanic, Rose nodded and forced a little smile. She followed Swanic out of the room and down another corridor, wondering how he kept the small labyrinth that was this building straight. They found another door, also guarded with a jeep outside, this one covered.

"Come along then," Swanic huffed as he climbed into the driver's side and started up the jeep.

Without another word, Rose jumped into the passenger side of the jeep and buckled up, unsure of how good a driver this particular alien was. Swanic didn't seem concerned about it, turning the jeep and heading for the rear gate of the base. It only took them a moment to get through with the guard stopping them for a moment to take a quick photo of Rose.

"We'll have a badge read for you when you return," the man promised before snapping a salute.

Rose decided against informing him that she was British. Swanic pulled out onto the road around the base and they began to drive towards the body of water that Rose could see shining in the distance. As it turned out Swanic was a very good driver and didn't talk much as they navigated their way around five turns. Finally they were on a long stretch of road that ran alongside the lake and Rose could see several military vehicles parked just off the road with the area taped off. Beyond them was a large dark green RV that looked a lot like the mobile science and command units that Rose had seen before. More vehicles were placed all around the lake, guarding it from outsiders. As she climbed out of the jeep, Rose noted the long black rope that had been placed in the sand around the lake with no one going near it, the marker for the boundary of the strange effect.

"There's been no danger to anyone going in so far right?" Rose asked Swanic without looking at him, her eyes fixed on the completely still looking lake in front of her.

"Not so far, everyone has been fine once they got out. We've been putting harnesses on them so we can pull them out of the bubble safely. That's worked every time."

"Doctor Swanic," a younger female voice called from the doorway of the large trailer. "The atomic clock you requested is here."

"Ah, excellent," Swanic exclaimed, clamoring out of his chair and moving towards the doorway.

"Atomic clock," Rose repeated with a small smile. "You want to see how the bubble affects it?"

"Indeed," Swanic explained. "I'm still not completely convinced that time is actually stopped inside or even slowed down. It is also possible that is the movement of molecules that has slowed down."

"I'm not sure that is a valid theory," Rose remarked with a slight frown.

"Miss Tyler, your experiences make you far more inclined to look at time as the potential problem, but we need to explore other possibilities as well."

"But will the atomic clock even pick up the effect if it just molecules being held in stasis?" Rose questioned. "Atomic clocks use an electronic transition frequency in the electromagnetic spectrum. They're based on atomic theory."

"True, but if the restriction of movement is tied to only one aspect of molecules then it may still pick up something," Swanic suggested. "And until the Doctor arrives I refuse to just sit here an twiddle my thumbs."

"But you've been able to pull people out of the bubble, that's movement."

"Yes, but that movement, the force of the pull was coming from outside of the bubble."

"But it still impacted the object inside of the bubble," Rose countered. "That means that physical laws of motion do still have impact within the area."

Swanic looked at Rose for a moment before he made a sad little shrug with a nod. "I'm aware of that. I ordered the clock when we first discovered what was happening. These aren't the easiest things to transport." Rose followed Swanic outside and he smiled as he walked over to a large grey metal box with instruments and dials on the front. He patted the device fondly. "And let's be honest Miss Tyler, we need to be seen trying something. The soldiers are becoming very frightened of this effect."

"Agreed," Rose remarked, glancing around with worry, the TARDIS still nowhere in sight. "Then I volunteer to take the atomic clock into the bubble," Rose said before she could think about what she as saying.


	13. Hole in Time: Visions of Reality

The Tyler Factor

By Lumendea

Chapter Thirteen: Hole in Time: Visions of Reality

Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who or any of the spinoff material and I gain no income off of this story, just the satisfaction of playing with the characters.

Taking a deep breath, Rose eyed the heavy black rope that had been placed on the course ground to mark the outer edge of the bubble nervously. Her eyes lifted and she stared at the air in front of her. Rose almost thought that she could see it shimmer, but wasn't sure if it was the bubble, her imagination or just the heat off the sand. Stretching out her hand, Rose took a tiny step forward and tapped with her fingers, waiting to see if she felt something.

It was silly of course and she chuckled to herself as air filtered over her fingertips. In her other hand she was carrying the metal case. It was lighter than she'd expected, but still heavy enough that she wasn't going to forget that she was carrying it. Looking back over her shoulder, Rose spotted Swanic shifting nervously between his feet.

Refused to be deterred, Rose stepped forward. She could almost hear the people watching sucking in their breaths. The urge to snap at them rose sharply through her, but Rose settled for rolling her eyes and stepping forwards again. She didn't feel anything, but the sounds behind her began oddly muted. Then the lake suddenly changed, a ripple of water appearing in the middle as something rose out of the water. It was long and narrow, like a needle tower at the top of a building. There was a flash of light and the air around Rose shuddered against her skin and the air was pushed out of her lungs.

A sharp hot pain sheared through her head, her entire body shivered in pain. Her shoulders ached, her knees buckled, her neck was screaming and she could barely feel her hands. Rose screamed, her fingers unclenching and releasing the atomic clock from her grip. She barely heard it hit the sand as her hands came up to her head, digging into her hair. Her legs gave out and she fell forward, her knees hitting moist sand and her hands falling into the cool water. She couldn't see anymore as darkness faded over her eyes and then she couldn't hear anything. It was like slipping off to sleep, Rose suddenly couldn't keep track of where she was.

Her mind was a haze, images kept flashing through it. There was so much noise: crying, laughing, talking, shouting, whispers, crashing and music all jumbled together. Her chest tightened, she didn't know what to feel. There was joy, sorrow, fear, anger, disgust, anticipation, surprise, shock, pity, compassion, amusement, pride, envy and love all wrapped up in sudden blast that Rose had no defense again. Desperately, she grabbed hold of one of the feelings, one of the sounds and one set of images bursting through her mind.

…..

The red alert was going off, filing the small metal corridors with noise and bright light. She didn't think, her feet moving on their own and carrying her down the corridor towards the engine room.

"Tyler!" a tall dark skinned woman shouted as she rushed into the large noisy room. Pipes ran all over the walls and large machines filled the space, only small walkways between them that she could barely squeeze through. "Leak in section 4, plug it up and get the system normalized.

The words meant nothing to her, but she moved sharply and twisted around a large piece of machinery. It clanked loudly behind her and she stepped through a wave of steam, feeling it cling to her skin. Her fingers found a large switchboard and danced over a series of small switches, turning them and flicking them in a seemingly random order. The whirling noise surrounding her slowed and she moved forward, leaning down and pulling a box filled with tools out from a grate under the controls. Some of the tools she recognized, others were very strange, but she moved quickly over to another panel, pulled it open, picked up a tool and started to work on a series of smaller pipes.

A blast of hot steam rushed over the side of her face and back. She could feel her jumpsuit becoming damp and sticking to the skin of her back. It was uncomfortable, so were the droplets of water spilling down her face as the steam condensed on her skin, but she ignored it. The blaring of the alarm echoed around her, threatening to drive her to distraction, but years onboard the ship had conditioned her too well and she ignored it. This was known, this was familiar and yet somehow it wasn't.

….

The baby was crying and she rolled over with a groan. Her feet hit the floor, coming into contact with a thick rug which helped warm her feet. There was a grumble from the other side of the bed and a muffled voice that she couldn't make out. She walked forward to an open doorway and into a small room. Soft blue walls met her eyes were she reached over and turned on a small light. A crib in the center of the room with a veil over it caught her eyes as the crying intensified.

She made soft sounds and stepped forward, reaching to pull back the veil. A baby with brown eyes and warm coco skin stared up at her for a moment before closing as the baby screamed again. Reaching down, she gently picked up the infant, held it to her chest and rocked it gently as she headed out the doorway and into a small kitchen.

In a familiar rhythm she retrieved a bottle from the refrigerator and started it heating in the microwave. Rocking the infant gently, she made small cooing sounds even as she glanced around the room. A stack of unwashed dishes were piled in the sink, the small card table at the side of the kitchen with two chairs and a high chair had a small stack of bills waiting to be paid. Sighing, she took a hand off her daughter's back and pushed a strand of hair behind her ear. When the microwave beeped, she pulled out the bottle, tested that it wasn't too hot and walked out into the small living room. She sat down on the sofa and carefully repositioned the baby to feed her.

When that was done, she left the bottle on the coffee table and carried the now groggy infant back towards the bedroom. Her husband was still snoring soundly as she crept past him and back into the small room that served as the nursery. Setting the infant back down in the crib, she smiled gently at the child and whispered a few words in a strange language that rolled off her tongue easily, but she couldn't seem to understand.

…..

She was walking out across the an empty and cold beach, waves crashing onto nearby rocks as she looked around. Desperation gathered in her chest, the soft voice of the Doctor calling to her. His voice was welcome, sounding wonderful to her ears and hope was rising in her chest along with a lingering fear that this was going to be the last time she ever heard his voice.

Then he appeared in front of her. The Doctor, her brown eyed Doctor in his pinstriped suit was standing in front of her on a strange beach. Her hair wiped around her and she could feel tears rolling down her face. She wanted to ask what was happening, but different words came from her mouth. A sense of total loss and helplessness threatened to overwhelm her. The Doctor looked almost as bad, a dark sadness in his eyes, surrender and defeat.

They talked about her being dead 'back home' whatever that meant. People were missing, something horrible must have happened. He looked past her nodded behind her, she was vaguely aware that her mother was nearby with Mickey, but nothing else made sense in her mind. The conversation seemed too long and too short, they were avoiding something. She couldn't take it anymore, the grief was piling up too high and she couldn't bear regret as well.

"Love you," she said around a wave of tears that she just couldn't control. Her heart ached and she felt ready to drop in exhaustion.

"Quite right too," the Doctor replied, a slight waver to his voice. "And I suppose if it's my last chance to say it… Rose Tyler-"

He vanished, his image just disappearing, words left unsaid. She thought he'd say them, she thought she'd heard them before. He loved her, she knew he did, but he hadn't said it and now he was gone. Her heart ached and the tears became to fall freely. Turning around, she saw her mother and Mickey standing next to a man who looked like an older version of her later father Pete Tyler and could barely breathe.

….

Blood oozed gently out of the small incision in the pale skin in front of her which was only a few centimeter's long, surrounded by sterile white cloth. A hand reached forward and a small pad gently dabbed up the blood. Around her there was the sound of several machines and a few low voices. Across her face she felt some kind of surgical mask and her hair felt short underneath some kind of cap. Rose raised her hand, bringing a small metal tube that looked vaguely familiar up in front of her. She placed the slightly pointed tip of the metal tube into the small incision.

"Releasing nanos," she said calmly, her voice slightly muffled. "Establish connection."

"Connection established doctor," a female voice replied. "Communication and controls fully functional."

"Excellent, let's clean up those arteries," she replied as she turned away from the human being that was sleeping on a long white table, looking very peaceful. "Monitor vital signs for any distress."

"Yes doctor," came a reply from several voices as she looked towards a large visual screen that was showing her the inside of a blood vessel. Instead of feeling impressed with the sight, she calmly picked up a small game system like remote from under the screen and started pressing buttons.

…..

The controls shook violently in her hands and the control screens were flashing. Filling the viewer directly in front of her was the rapidly approaching ground of a red and blue planet that normally would have left her smiling in awe. But now the controls were flickering, the warning for the various systems were going off and she could hear crying and screaming behind her as the passengers were overtaken by their fear. In the corner of her eye she could see her co-pilot pressing multiple buttons and using the communications center.

"We're not going to make it," he insisted, fear filling his voice.

Her fingers tightened even more around the controls as her eyes darted up to one of the view screens. They'd lost one engine, only one left and a long way to go. Her mind raced, turning everything she knew about the systems over in her head. With a flash of inspiration, she pulled up sharply on the controls, raising the nose of the shuttle away from the planet. The planet all but vanished from their view and the shuttle started to shake, but the pressure in the second engine began to ease.

"The heat shield can take it," she heard herself reply in a thick, almost pained voice. "We just need the engine to hold out a little longer."

"I hope you know what you're doing," the co-pilot exclaimed, pressing several more buttons as the communication system beeped on and frantic voices came through from the other end.

"So do I," she muttered, carefully adjusting the angel of the shuttle.

….

Doctor Matthews leapt out of the jeep and ran down the beach towards Swanic. Ahead of her, the once invisible dome was glowing all different colors that were just bright and solid enough to obscure her view of the lake.

"What the hell happened?" Matthews demanded as she stalked towards Swanic, her eyes scanning the beach for Tyler.

"Tyler volunteered to take the atomic clock inside the bubble," Swanic replied, his voice remarkably calm as he tapped on the small hand held computer he was holding. "This occurred just after she stepped into the bubble."

"Was it the atomic clock?"

"No, I doubt that the clock had any parts that would set off this kind of reaction," Swanic replied with a sad chuckle. "If Tyler was right and the Silver Lord had something to do with this then I'd say that this is a trap being sprung."

"Damn it," Matthews hissed, shielding her eyes and looking back out at the bubble. "Any ideas?" 

"I'm trying to reestablish connection with the instruments we set up earlier, but so far I can't access them."

"The connection is down?"

"Actually its worse than that," Swanic replied, gesturing down towards a cable lying on the beach. It was cut at one end. "Everything that was wired out here, which earlier had a delay in any communications, now looks like it has been cut off."

"By what? That bubble?"

"I'm not sure," Swanic admitted, his face showing a hint of fear and worry. "But it is almost like everything in that bubble was suddenly cut off from us. Like it isn't there anymore."

"What do you mean?" Matthews demanded.

"Try touching it," Swanic offered, gesturing towards the bubble. "It's safe, I promise you that."

Giving him a confused look, Matthews took a few steps closer to the bubble and reached out and touched it. It felt like gel against her hands and after a moment of hestitation she pushed her hand forward, watching it sink into the surface. Then there was a hand on her back and she was suddenly pushed forward.

Stumbling forward, Matthews coughed and shivered, her body feeling cold. A hand grabbed her arm and helped her stand up. A soldier was standing in front of her and blinking in surprise, Matthews looked around for the bubble. It was behind her and she turned just in time to see Swanic step forward out of the bubble, the strange gell slipping around his body.

"What was that Swanic?"

"We're on the far side of the bubble, we passed straight through it in less than a second," Swanic informed Matthews with a stern expression. "Everything inside that bubble cannot be accessed and that bubble is cutting Lake Silencio off from everything else. It started off as the Lake being cut off from time, but I think it is starting to be cut off from space as well."

"And what will that mean for Tyler?"

"I'm sorry Doctor Matthews, but this is beyond me… but… my theory is that the bubble is capable of completely cutting the lake off from both space and time. It is already distorting time and space, but if it can be completely sealed off then…. Rose will vanish from reality completely. Once that happens… I'm not even sure if we'll even remember any of this."

Doctor Matthews gasped painfully, staring at Swanic with wide eyes, but was saved from having to answer by the sound of grinding and wheezing echoing around the lake. They both turned and looked around for the source of the noise. Swanic grabbed Matthews hand and tugged her back through the bubble. They arrived back on the other side in time to see the Eleventh Doctor with his tweed coat, bowtie and fly away hair step out of the TARDIS. Another man with dark hair and wearing a long world war two era trench coat stepped out behind him, both of them glaring at the bubble angrily.


End file.
